Geisinger in the News 

Geisinger Health System Acquires Community Medical Center in Pennsylvania
Geisinger Health System of Danville, PA, has acquired Community Medical Center in Scranton, Penn., and its affiliates.
See Becker's Hospital Review 1/24

Geisinger study IDs genetic markers for cerebral palsy
For years it was thought that a difficult birth and other perinatal factors were the leading causes of cerebral palsy (CP), a group of disorders that can involve brain and nervous system functions such as movement, learning, hearing, seeing and thinking. Now, researchers at Geisinger Health System find that the majority of cerebral palsy causes may in fact be caused by genetic abnormalities.
See Newswise 1/26

Some patients are now able to read their doctor’s notes following an office visit
A study, in which Geisinger is a participant, is examining the impact of adding a new layer of openness to a traditionally one-sided element of the doctor-patient relationship – the notes from patients’ doctors’ visits.
See The Washington Post 1/16

InVivo Therapeutics, Geisinger Health System to conduct clinical studies for treatment of chronic pain
InVivo Therapeutics Holdings Corp. and Geisinger Health System announced their collaborative research to conduct a preclinical study using InVivo’s injectable biocompatible hydrogel to treat chronic pain caused by peripheral nerve compression.
See Beacon Equity Research 1/17

Thomson Reuters names top 15 health systems
The Thomson Reuters fourth annual study named the top 15 health systems in the country. Among them, Geisinger Health System.
See Healthcare Finance News 1/17/12

Officials laud merger with Geisinger
The biggest clue that Shamokin Area Community Hospital is now part of Geisinger Medical Center isn't the sign atop the facility declaring its new name. It's the crowded parking lots.
See The Daily Item 1/12/12

Health system says it won't hire smokers
The vaunted Geisinger Health System in central Pennsylvania ushered in the new year by becoming the latest employer to resolve not to hire smokers.
See The Philadelphia Inquirer 1/1/12

Employers hope to curb health costs with nicotine tests
A growing number of employers throughout the nation are seeking to curb health costs by testing new job applicants for nicotine use. Those who test positive will not be hired, and health insurance companies may charge a higher premium for current employees who acknowledge that they smoke or chew tobacco.
See Pittsburgh Post-Gazette 1/9/12

Workplaces ban not only smoking, but smokers themselves
An increasing number of employers won't hire applicants who test positive for nicotine use, whether from cigarettes, smokeless tobacco or even patches. As bans on smoking sweep the USA, an increasing number of employers — primarily hospitals, including Geisinger Health System — are also imposing bans on smokers.
See USA Today 1/6/12

President Clinton cites Geisinger as healthcare industry model
"The best healthcare policies would help the private healthcare system just as much as they would help the budget of Medicare and Medicaid. I’ll just give you one example: The Geisinger Health System in eastern Pennsylvania…”
See 2:37:16 to 2:40:04 of video of the President’s speech

Woman endured years of troubling spells before their cause was recognized
Geisinger experts diagnose and cure a woman who suffered for years from an unknown condition that controlled her life.
See Washington Post

Making Clinical Trials Less of a Tribulation
Using the Geisinger Health System database, it took only a few weeks to identify 5,300 patients who fit the study's parameters.
See Wall Street Journal

Quality, not quantity
Above a valley in Pennsylvania sits an old hospital that gives an optimistic hint about the future of American health care.
See The Economist

President Obama Cites Geisinger

In his healthcare address to Congress Sept. 9, President Obama cited Geisinger as a model of reform.

Geisinger Paying to Cut Health Costs
The New York Times looks at Geisinger's focus on helping patients with chronic diseases manage their conditions and stay out of the hospital.
See New York Times

Innovative Hospitals Offer Model for Reforms
Geisinger has shaken up traditional healthcare practices with innovations considered radical.
See Financial Times

Health Reform Up Close 
CNN Reports on Geisinger Health System's innovative approaches to providing healthcare quality.
See Health Reform Up Close

Geisinger Gold, Geisinger Health Plan Rank in Top Ten of Health Plans Nationally
Geisinger Gold and Geisinger Health Plan (GHP) are the top-ranked commercial and Medicare health plans in Pennsylvania and in the top ten nationally for quality and service.
See U.S. News rankings

A Healthier Way to Pay Doctors
Time Magagine looks at the effort to rein in health-care costs by examining Geisinger's group practice approach.
See A Healthier Way to Pay Doctors

One Company's Innovative Healthcare approach
CNN reports on Geisinger's ProvenCare program
 See One Company's Innovative Health Care Approach

Fewer Errors on Medical Records
CNN takes a close-up look at one how Geisinger is using electronic medical records to deliver better care and make fewer mistakes.
See Fewer Errors On Medical Records

Better Care, Less Pay
An Associated Press story that ran in over 300 newspapers notes: "At Geisinger Health System in Pennsylvania, pay a flat fee for bypass surgery and you'll get essentially a 90-day warranty on your heart fix. Complications? The hospital has to eat the cost. It gambled that following a checklist of best practices would help patients recover faster and cost less -- and so far, it's winning the bet." (no longer available online)

President Obama cites Geisinger as healthcare industry model
"We have to ask why places like the Geisinger Health system in rural Pennsylvania...can offer high-quality care at costs well below average, but other places in America can't. We need to identify the best practices across the country, learn from the success, and replicate that success elsewhere."
See Text of President's Speech at Green Bay Southwest
See Report of President's address to AMA with video

Geisinger Careworks retail clinic featured in New York Times
Geisinger’s Careworks Convenient Healthcare™ retail clinics were featured in a recent New York Times article entitled, Hospitals Begin to Move Into Supermarkets.
See New York Times

For this health system, less is more
The Washington Post reports that "In an industry that makes its money by selling more - more tests, more surgeries, more drugs - Geisinger Health System officials gambled three years ago that they could succeed by doing less, but doing it better."See Washington Post (.pdf)

'Medical home' approach brings back managed care
Boston Globe article on managed care quotes Ronald Paulus, MD
See Boston Globe

PBS News Hour with Jim Lehrer
On March 30, the News Hour with Jim Lehrer featured Drs. Steele, Casale and Paulus, and other members of Geisinger staff in a story on our electronic health record capabilities, ProvenCare and Medical Home - and how they relate to healthcare reform.
Listen to News Hour with Jim Lehrer

Managing Heart Attacks
Geisinger's Level 1 Heart Attack program is profiled in a recent WKOK Roundtable discussion.
Listen to WKOK Roundtable

Geisinger recognized on PBS News Hour with Jim Lehrer
In a PBS News Hour with Jim Lehrer segment entitled Fixing the American Healthcare System, Stuart Altman, PhD, professor of National Health Policy at Brandeis University, cited Geisinger Health System for its work in improving healthcare quality and value by paying for episodes of care or bundles of care.
Listen to PBS broadcast

Continuous Innovation in Health Care: Implications of the Geisinger Experience
Finding innovative ways to deliver healthcare to patients is key to ensuring that Medicare is able to meet the needs of the nation’s baby boomers according to a new paper by Geisinger Health System leaders published in Health Affairs.
See Health Affairs

Medical "Home" Plan Cut Hospital Admissions: Study
Reuters Health News writes about the success of Geisinger's medical home program and how the program cuts hospital readmissions.
See Reuters

Defying convention, cutting costs, and improving health care
Fast Company magazine takes an in-depth look at Geisinger's ProvenCare program and the program's potential to change America's health care system.
See Fast Company Magazine

Geisinger Health System has pioneered a new program called ProvenCare
The New York Times reports that it’s an experiment that experts say is "radically new way to encourage hospitals and doctors to provide high-quality care that can avoid costly mistakes."
See New York Times

ICU visitation
The Boston Globe writes about open visitations in ICUs, and mentions Geisinger's highly successful program.
See Boston Globe

PTSD research
Reuters news service writes a story about a research study by nationally-recognized Geisinger researcher Dr. Joseph Boscarino on the link between PTSD and heart disease.
See Reuters