Innovation, influence and business in America's medical cities.

Highlights of the important and the interesting in the world of health care:

Quality is not job 1: A survey published in Health Affairs revealed that, for more than half of hospital boards, quality of care is not among the top two priorities when evaluating chief executives. It seems most hospital boards are more concerned with business and financial matters than the quality of care their institutions provide, according to an industry consultant and former hospital CEO interviewed by American Medical News.

While it’s fairly disturbing that hospital boards, which clearly have substantial power to influence the direction of their institutions, place such a low priority on something as important as the quality of care, there is a silver lining to be found. The research also showed strong links between the importance that boards placed on quality improvement and their hospitals’ performance in federal care metrics, which suggests an easy way to improve quality at hospitals: Appoint board members who will actually prioritize patient care. Perhaps that’s a novel concept, but it shouldn’t be.

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Increase in obesity offsets drop in smoking: Gains Americans have made in life expectancy from cutting back on smoking could be offset by rising rates of obesity, according to a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine. Declines in smoking rates in recent decades mean that an average 18-year-old’s life expectancy would increase by 0.31 years. However, the trend of increasing body mass indexes would reduce that same person’s life expectancy by 1.02 years, the researchers said. Put the numbers together and it means that life expectancies drop by 0.71 years.

The study indicates, somewhat surprisingly, that obesity may actually be worse for your health than smoking. Says one weight-management expert, according to the L.A. Times:

“With smoking we know that people may get lung cancer or heart disease, but with obesity they can have a number of health issues, from multiple types of cancer to diabetes and high cholesterol. If you have to pick two evils, it’s scary to think that smoking might be the lesser.”

The moral of the story, as always, is choose your vices wisely.

Is that so? National Public Radio’s blog has a worthwhile post examining the accuracy of claims about the health reform bills by two senators. Is Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd speaking factually when he claims that health insurance will become a buyer’s market on the day the health bill is enacted? Is Iowa Sen. Charles Grassley speaking the truth when he claims the health bill isn’t “revenue neutral” and would eventually cause deficits? Click the link to find out.

Bubblicious: The blog Health Care Renewal draws some interesting parallels between America’s inefficiency-plagued health care system and the global financial meltdown. Similiarities, according to the blog, include regulators who have little interest in actually, um, regulating and major organizations headed by “clueless” leaders, among others.

What’s it all mean for the future of health care, and what will happen when the health “bubble” bursts? Health Care Renewal doesn’t offer specifics, though the blog warns of “considerable adverse consequences.”