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The use of low-value procedures is harming patients, consuming hospital resources and delaying care for patients for whom the services would be appropriate, according to a new assessment of seven low-value procedures published in JAMA Internal Medicine.

In a quest to make hospital rooms more intelligent and convenient, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles is piloting Aiva—an Alexa-powered platform that allows patients to interact hands-free with hospital staff and control their in-room entertainment.

A report from The Wall Street Journal has led some popular health and wellness apps to cease data sharing with social network company Facebook after the practice was revealed.

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Burnout among physicians improved slightly over the last few years, but not all specialties have seen much of a difference, according to data published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings.

Lady_Justice

A proposed merger between two major health insurance providers ended in a messy breakup after antitrust issues prohibited the roughly $50 billion transaction in 2017. Now, the two companies, Anthem and Cigna, are still disputing which company will foot the costs of the failed deal, Bloomberg Quint reported.

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A study published in JAMA Open Network found Asian physicians received lower likelihood to recommend (LTR) scores, compared to non-Hispanic white physicians. With this in mind, health organizations using patient satisfaction scores for physician compensation and promotion should adjust for patient race and ethnicity.

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The filler contains hydroxylapatite microspheres, which may be visible on medical imaging.