Preparation could curb looming nurse shortage

Linda Tieman

When the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act entered the national conversation a few years ago, for most people, 2014 seemed distant in the future. Today, the future is at our doorstep. If the Washington state legislature decides during a...

Spokane global health research niche eyed by WSU

Jessica Valencia

Research being conducted at Washington State University in Pullman could have important implications for the planned medical school here when a branch of the university's Paul G. Allen School of Global Animal Health starts operating in Spokane, of...

Emergency departments aim for more efficient use

How will the emergency department's role in overall health care delivery change in coming years?Dr. Jeff Collins, chief medical officer, Providence Health Care: In recent years, emergency departments have become the focal point for care in a...

Trying to solve the affordability puzzle at Group Health

Kelly Stanford

Like all other health care organizations, Group Health Cooperative is facing a radically changing health care market and the pressure of rising costs. But from chaos, comes opportunity. We are adapting in ways that put our patients' needs at the to...

WSU Spokane readies for second-year med school students

Mike McLean

Thanks to a two-year pilot program set to start in the fall, medical students in all four years of medical school soon will receive education and training based at the Riverpoint Campus, in Spokane. Even before that pilot program starts, public and...

Many expect to navigate ACA, continue to offer benefits

What impact do you expect to see as employers are faced with the choice of offering health care insurance to employees or paying a required alternate fee?Val Fields, director of human resources, Associated Industries: Whether loved or loathed...

ACA is reshaping small-group health insurance markets

Bill Akers

2013 is a critical year for the implementation of federal health care reform taking place in 2014, also known as the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Employers likely recall a first wave of implementation of the law in 2010, but the biggest changes to...

Viren & Associates focuses on diverse financial advice

Treva Lind

Viren & Associates Inc., a Spokane-based financial planning and employee benefits advisory company, has remained viable for almost 20 years by diversifying the services it offers clients, says Paul Viren, managing principal there. Viren, who in...