Trending News Today: Drug-Resistant Fungus Linked to 4 Deaths

Since 2012, the Office of the Inspector General at the Department of Health and Human Services has investigated more than 200 cases of fraud and abuse in the Personal Care Services program. This Medicaid program provides non-medical care at home to elderly and disabled patients. The caretakers in this program are untrained and unregulated, which can lead to abuse and neglect, according to Kaiser Health News.

A new drug-resistant fungus, Candida auris, has been associated with at least 4 deaths in the United States recently. The fungus was first identified in 2009, and has been seen in 13 US patients since 2013. All patients had serious diseases, such as cancer, and had been in the hospital for an average of 18 days before they tested positive for the fungus, according to Kaiser Health News.

A program called the House Calls service at Northwell Health dispatched community paramedics to elderly patients who have suffered from a fall or another serious condition. These paramedics undergo 40 hours of additional training to provide the necessary care on site instead of taking patients to the hospital, The New York Times reported. Geriatricians have said that hospitalizing elderly patients is not always safe, and can speed up the decline of patients.