Patients that are obese should be aware of possible challenges when it comes to administering anesthesia during surgical procedures, according to a report in HealthDay.

A clinic-based system to provide healthcare in New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina could serve as a national model for providing low-cost primary care to low-income groups, according to a report by the Commonwealth Fund.

A new ban against hiring smokers at Memorial Hospital in Chattanooga is raising questions about whether such a policy amount to hiring discrimination, according to a report by the Chattanooga Free Press.

The number of adverse events putting hospital patients at risk of serious injury or death fell slightly in Minnesota last year, according to a report by the state's Department of Health.

Patients who are infected with methicillan-resistant Staphylococcus aureus after surgery are 35 times more likely to be readmitted to the hospital and can cost hospitals around $60,000 more than patients who are not infected, according to a report in American…

Hospitals in Arizona are warning that a $7.6 million cut to the state's Medicaid program will reduce access to care for program enrollees, according to a report by the Arizona Republic.

1. Recession. Though conditions have improved in some areas, hospitals are still feeling the lasting effects of the recession.

The Washington State Department of Health has launched a new Web site where residents can view and compare infection rates for hospitals across the state, according to a Washington State DOH news release.

A recent study by Duke University Medical Center researchers found that post-surgical infections significantly increase the chance of hospital readmission and death and cost as much as $60,000 per patient, according to a Duke Medicine news release.

Researchers from Duke University Medical Center found that by adding ethyl nitrite gas to the carbon dioxide used to inflate the surgical area during laparoscopy, blood flow and organ function was better preserved during noninvasive surgery, according to a Duke…