Becker's Hospital Review

71 FINANCE CMO / CARE DELIVERY Untreatable Superbug Makes Its Way to US for First Time: 6 Things to Know By Heather Punke A strain of E. coli resistant to colistin — the antibiotic of last resort — was identified for the first time in the U.S. in April, marking "the emergence of a truly pan-drug resistant bacteria," according to a study published in Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy in May. Here are six things to know about colistin, this case and "super" superbugs. 1. The bacteria were cultured from the urine of a 49-year-old female who was treated at a military clinic in Pennsylvania. The sample, which was sent to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Md., showed the colistin- resistant gene, mcr-1. 2. Colistin is "one of the last efficacious antibiotics for the treatment of highly resistant bacteria," Patrick McGann, PhD, from the Multidrug Resistant Organism Repository and Surveillance Network at Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, said, according to Science Daily. "The emergence of a transferable gene that confers resistance to this vital antibiotic is extremely disturbing. The discovery of this gene in the U.S. is equally concerning." 3. CDC Director Tom Frieden, MD, said in The Washington Post the discovery "basically shows us that the end of the road isn't very far away for antibiotics — that we may be in a situation where we have patients in our intensive care units, or patients getting urinary tract infections for which we do not have antibiotics." 4. While this is the first discovery of such bacteria in the U.S., the drug-resistant and deadly strain has also shown up in pigs, raw pork and a small number of people in China in November, according to the Post. It is also in Europe. 5. The CDC is working with Pennsylvania health officials to find out where the Pennsylvania woman — whose outcome was not reported — contracted the bacteria, according to the Post. The study notes that the woman did not report any travel for the last five months. 6. "Continued surveillance to determine the true frequency for this gene in the USA is critical," the study authors concluded. n Primary Care Pay Grows Faster Than Specialties: 6 Findings By Kelly Gooch C ompensation for primary care providers increased at a faster rate than specialty care compensation last year, according to the 2015 Medical Group Management Association annual compensation survey. e survey was based on comparative data of more than 80,000 providers. "New care delivery models for primary care are shaping the landscape of healthcare delivery, and in turn shaping patient experiences in doctors' offices around the country," Halee Fischer-Wright, MD, president and CEO of MGMA, said in a prepared statement. "Practices are giving primary care physicians significant new responsibility for coordinating care among specialists, managing patient medications, and helping patients and caregivers manage chronic conditions. As we shi toward value-based payment, practices will continue to look to primary care and nonphysician providers to lead efforts to improve patient experiences and the quality of care they provide." Here are six findings from the survey, as stated by MGMA. 1. e survey found that median primary care physician compensation increased more than 4 percent in 2015 over 2014, to more than $250,000. Specialist compensation grew by more than 3 percent to approximately $425,000. 2. Both primary and specialty care physician compensation grew faster last year than in 2014. Non-physician pay also increased, growing by nearly 4 percent to about $107,000 in median compensation in 2015. 3. Primary care compensation has grown faster than specialty care compensation over time, the survey found. Over the past five years, primary care compensation has increased by 18 percent, while specialty care compensation has increased by about 11 percent. 4. States where primary care physicians earned the highest salaries in 2015 were Alaska, Wisconsin and Arkansas, while primary care physicians in Nevada, Maine and Maryland earned the least. 5. Among specialty care physicians, providers in Wisconsin, Nevada and Nebraska earned the highest total compensation, and those in Maryland, Wyoming, and Pennsylvania earned the lowest compensation last year, according to the survey. 6. Surgeons earned the highest total compensation last year, with pediatric cardiovascular and neurological surgery, Mohs surgery, orthopedic spinal surgery and neurological surgery ranking among the five highest compensated specialties in 2015. n

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