Unchecked: Lax home health aide laws put Florida’s sick and elderly at risk
While the AHCA requires home health agencies to background check their workers and have proper licenses to operate, independent home health aides have no such demands from the state. Florida doesn't require background checks for home health aides who don't work for licensed agencies. It’s a responsibility many are unaware of when searching for help with a loved one in need. It can be daunting and overwhelming. [Source: WTSP]
Florida Trend Exclusive
Nursing 2.0
Jing Wang is dean of Florida State University’s College of Nursing, where she also serves as a professor. In June, she was invited to serve on the National Advisory Council for Nursing Research at the National Institutes of Health to review and recommend grant applications for nursing research. She is nationally known for integrating technology into nursing research and education. [Source: Florida Trend]
Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths here in Florida. Here’s why
Floridians are at high risk for lung cancer, and many are waiting too long to get screened. The 2024 American Lung Association’s “State of Lung Cancer” report, released on Nov. 19, reveals that lung cancer is the most lethal cancer in Florida. The more localized state report shows only a quarter of Floridians with lung cancer get diagnosed early, which lowers their five-year survival rate. [Source: South Florida Sun-Sentinel]
Florida Trend Exclusive
Expanding pediatric partnership
There’s a well-worn saying in health care, that children aren’t simply small adults — meaning children are physiologically unique in many ways from their adult counterparts, and caring for them requires special skills. Nursing students at the University of Central Florida in Orlando gain much of that knowledge and hands-on training through clinical rotations at Nemours Children’s Health, which operates a free-standing hospital in Lake Nona Medical City, adjacent to where UCF is building a new home for its College of Nursing. [Source: Florida Trend]
Florida's Canadian drug import plan goes nowhere after the FDA's approval
Nearly a year after the Biden administration gave Florida the green light to become the first state to import lower-cost prescription drugs from Canada — a longtime goal of politicians across the political spectrum, including President-elect Donald Trump — the program has yet to begin. [Source: Health News Florida]
ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:
› Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital to undergo $62 million expansion
Florida’s top-ranked children’s hospital will soon expand its downtown St. Petersburg campus to better accommodate complex surgical procedures and the area’s growth. Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital will commence construction on the $62 million project in the spring. The new 28,000-square-foot facility will abut the existing emergency center and face the corner of Fifth Avenue South and Sixth Street South.
› A Miami health company is in bankruptcy and plans to sell. What patients should know
Another South Florida health company has declared bankruptcy. Miami-based CareMax, which provides healthcare to thousands of seniors at centers across the state, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection this week, with $693 million in debt and $390 million in assets. The case was filed Nov. 17 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Texas.
› AdventHealth enters into agreement to acquire Florida health care facilities
AdventHealth has signed a definitive agreement to purchase ShorePoint Health Port Charlotte and certain assets of ShorePoint Health Punta Gorda from affiliates of Community Health Systems, Inc. The transaction also includes related businesses, including physician clinic operations, outpatient services and ShorePoint Health Emergency Department in Cape Coral.
› UF Health exploring a fourth free-standing ER in Jacksonville
UF Health, with three emergency and urgent care centers in Jacksonville, appears to be considering a fourth. City utility provider JEA is reviewing a service availability determination request for a proposed UF Health free-standing emergency department on 2.1 acres along the north side of Atlantic Boulevard, west of the Intracoastal Waterway.