Articles Tagged With:
-
Ethics Committee Members Want More Ethics Education
Many ethics committee members want to increase their ethics expertise. However, tailoring work schedules around course demands is an obstacle for many. After practicing in clinical settings for years, some ethics committee members are somewhat intimidated at the prospect of reentering a classroom in a formal academic setting.
-
Ethical Concerns if Clinicians Have Knowledge Gaps in Spiritual Care
Paige Stevens, MD, became interested in developing curricula to teach pediatricians — particularly pediatric critical care physicians — to incorporate the spiritual needs of patients into care plans. Stevens and colleagues conducted a targeted needs assessment to understand the current landscape of spiritual care training for pediatric critical care trainees.
-
Chaplains Are Asked to Do Ethics Work, but Additional Training Is Needed
Many are skeptical about chaplains’ ability to do ethics work. M. Jeanne Wirpsa, MA, BCC, HEC-C, program director and clinical ethicist at Northwestern Memorial Hospital’s Medical Ethics Program, and colleagues conducted a study to learn more about the experience of chaplains working in the clinical ethics field.
-
Echocardiographic Estimation of Left Atrial Pressure in Atrial Fibrillation Patients
A study of patients undergoing catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation with periprocedural echocardiograms and directly measured left atrial pressure (LAP) has shown that mean LAP can be estimated with a high degree of accuracy by a hierarchical algorithm using three Doppler echocardiographic parameters.
-
Philadelphia Jury Awards $6.8M After Hospital Fails to Find Stomach Perforation
On Nov. 22, 2024, a Philadelphia County jury awarded $6.8 million in a medical malpractice case to the estate of a patient who died after experiencing complications from a procedure to treat liver cancer. The lawsuit alleged negligence on the part of the hospital and its medical staff for failing to identify a stomach perforation that occurred during the procedure.
-
Pennsylvania Court Affirms $8 Million Verdict for Failure To Repair Uterine Artery
On Dec. 6, 2024, the Pennsylvania Superior Court upheld an $8 million jury verdict against a hospital in a medical malpractice case stemming from a cesarean delivery procedure. The appellate court found sufficient evidence to hold the hospital vicariously liable for its employees’ conduct, affirming claims that failures during surgery and post-operative care led to permanent harm to the plaintiff.
-
Older Physicians May Need Attention to Ensure Patient Safety
Research indicates that some older physicians may pose a threat to patient safety, but only a small number of healthcare organizations are developing strategies to require screening and additional actions to address these concerns. Policies are inconsistent among those organizations.
-
Documentation Huddles Improve Quality and Safety
CARE Homecare, an in-home care agency serving seniors in Los Angeles and Orange Counties, CA, use documentation huddles to improve quality of care and the usefulness of records in any legal dispute.
-
Documentation About Patient Safety, Not Just Litigation
Clinicians should be reminded that proper documentation is not only about providing a legal defense.
-
Avoid Spoiling Documentation with Most Common Errors
Documentation is such a crucial part of risk management that there can never be enough emphasis on how to properly document and how to avoid ruining the value of clinical records if they are ever used in legal matters. Constant education for clinicians is the only way to keep documentation clear and effective.