SAN FRANCISCO—“If you have ever been sued, you know it is a nightmare.” After warning physicians that such an experience would prove life-changing, Robin Diamond, JD, MSN, RN, and safety officer of the Doctors Company, offered tips to help them avoid that experience during a presentation March 10 at the American College of Cardiology (ACC) scientific session.

SAN FRANCISCO—Even after integration, cardiology groups and hospitals operate according to different agendas and with different goals. Each would like to credit for revenue, a situation that is particularly apparent after the initial five-year contract expires. Marc E. Shelton, MD, from Prairie Cardiovascular, in Springfield, Ill., shared secrets for optimizing the group’s position during a March 10 presentation at the American College of Cardiology (ACC) scientific session.

SAN FRANCISCO—Both carrot and stick approaches can be effective at inspiring recalcitrant cardiologists to change their behaviors. But whichever approach a manager takes, he or she must make an effort to make the process transparent. So advised a panel of cardiovascular leaders on March 9 at the American College of Cardiology (ACC) scientific session.

Hospitals that used an electronic discharge orders tool saw their 30-day heart failure (HF) readmission rates fall on average more than 2 percentage points lower than hospitals that did not apply the system. The tool also improved adherence to heart failure quality measures. The results are scheduled to be presented March 10 at the American College of Cardiology (ACC) scientific sessions in San Francisco.

The European Society of Cardiology (ESC) is creating a task force on cardiovascular disease (CVD) data standardization to allow data from different registries to be compared.

About one in six patients with newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes mellitus and no overt cardiovascular disease had evidence of silent MIs on electrocardiograms (ECGs), according to a study published March 5 in Circulation. The results don’t support routine use of screening ECGs in practice, though, wrote the author of an accompanying editorial.

We all know the saying, “Garbage in, garbage out.” Let’s take a look at the flip side, “Quality in, quality out.” And the phrase doesn’t have to refer to only data.

The American College of Cardiology’s 62nd Annual Scientific Session (ACC.13) on March 9-11 in San Francisco will feature sessions on coding and reimbursement updates, physician compensation models and how health reform impacts cardiology. Plus, at a joint symposium between the ACC and the Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS), experts will discuss the latest strategies for successful health IT implementation.