Health Care
Washington Health Alliance Shows Sharp Variability in Use of Medical Procedures
One of the biggest burdens on business is the rising complexity and cost of health care. Every new advance in health care seems to come at a higher price. Its the tax that keeps on growing. Fortunately, there is an antidote to the disease: transparency. Today, too many decision are made in the absence of…
Vera Whole Health and the Company Clinic
Vera Whole Health, which began life in 2008 as a Seattle fitness studio for women, has since morphed into a provider of onsite and near-site health clinics, including one that serves the 5,850 employees at Seattle Childrens. Just as the company envisioned with its fitness studio, says Vera CEO Ryan Schmid, Our goal is to…
How Washington Came Close to Establishing a Transparent Claims Database
Americans believe in the power of markets. Its one reason the nation has chosen not to follow the examples of Great Britain, Canada and other socialist models when it comes to health care. But there are open markets, and then theres United States health care. In open markets, competition is supposed to drive prices down…
Silver Dollars: Entrepreneurs Seize Opportunities Presented by Aging Boomers
While Americas growing population of seniors may prove a burden when it comes to the federal governments having to pay rising Social Security and Medicare bills, they represent an increasingly important market for businesses. Within King Countys population of 2 million, an estimated 232,000 people 11.6 percent of the countys populace are 65 or older….
2014 Leaders in Health Care Awards: Outstanding Global Health Organization
Winner Grand Challenges in Global HealthBill & Melinda Gates Foundation Even global health leaders get by, as the Beatles once sang, with a little help from their friends. Of course, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation does more than just get by. Fueled by the wealth of its namesake founders and contributors like Warren Buffett,…
2014 Leaders in Health Care Awards: Achievement in Wellness Programs
Winner Faculty & Staff Wellness ProgramWestern Washington University Measure a wellness program by the enthusiasm of its participants, and Western Washington Universitys is off the charts. After six years, more than 1,000 faculty and staff members on the Bellingham campus voluntarily take part. My fitness class has really been a life changer, says one staff…
2014 Leaders in Health Care Awards: Achievement in Community Outreach (Individuals)
Winner Beti Thompson, Ph.D.Center for Community Health Promotion, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center When Dr. Beti Thompson established the Center for Community Health Promotion in the Lower Yakima Valley, little there promoted the prevention of cancers through behavior and screening. These days, the majority Hispanic population relies on the offshoot of Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research…
2014 Leaders in Health Care Awards: Achievement in Medical Devices
Winner Paul Yager, Ph.D.Professor, UW Department of Bioengineering Paul Yager compares his many years of invention to being a forlorn parent. Your children leave and then they dont write, he quips. But his latest effort writes messages on paper to send home. The University of Washington professor of bioengineering is developing a disposable paper that…
2014 Leaders in Health Care Awards: Achievement in Biopharmaceuticals
Winner Kineta Inc.Seattle After starting two other biotech businesses, scientists Charles Magness and Shawn Iadonato understood how the long road of development and testing a new drug drew only the most patient investors. Waiting 10 years or more before realizing any return means only the ideas most certain to succeed get funded. We really wanted…
2014 Leaders in Health Care Awards: Outstanding Health Care Executive
Winners (TIE) Johnese SpissoChief Health System Officer, UW Medicine; Vice President Medical Affairs, University of Washington Making big changes in how an organization runs is never easy, and doing so at sprawling UW Medicine would daunt anyone. There, 25,000 employees care for patients across eight entities that include the University of Washington Medical Center, Northwest…
2014 Leaders in Health Care Awards: Outstanding Health Care Practitioner
Winner J. Randall Curtis, M.D.Director, UW Palliative Care Center of Excellence Dr. Randy Curtis first impressions of the need for palliative care occurred during the AIDS crisis of the 1980s. As with most medical students of his generation, it was a formative experience. I had the opportunity to see end-of-life care done very well in…
2014 Leaders in Health Care Awards: Lifetime Achievement
Frederick Appelbaum, M.D. Executive VP and Deputy Director, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center; Executive Director and President, Seattle Cancer Care Alliance Things have come full circle for Dr. Fred Appelbaum. Thirty-five years after his mentor, the late E. Donnall Thomas, drew him to the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, he is helping assure a future…
Spotlight: Cancer fighters
Three research giants are joining with some unlikely investors to make Seattle the hub of a $120 million startup named Juno Therapeutics, which will provide new cancer therapies based on a patients own immune system. The Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York and Seattle Childrens Research Institute are joining…