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In recent years, the analysis of complex system errors, such as medical errors occurring in the ED, has changed from simply labeling and punishing individuals to understanding the underlying systems that contribute to medical error. In this issue of Emergency Medicine Specialty Reports, error in the ED and its contributing factors will be discussed, as well as steps to develop a culture of safety.
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Although nurses cant be held individually liable under EMTALA, they can still be held liable under their states Nurse Practice Act and be named in medical malpractice lawsuits, says Shelley Cohen, RN, CEN, an educator for Health Resources Unlimited, a Hohenwald, TN-based consulting company specializing in ED triage and health care leadership.
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Community influenza outbreaks and emergency department ambulance diversion and Impact of a rapid rule-out protocol for pulmonary embolism on rate of screening, missed cases, and pulmonary vascular imaging in an urban U.S. emergency department.
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Is your patient falls reduction program up to par? If not, you could have problems during your next survey by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. One of the new National Patient Safety Goals for 2005 requires you to reduce the risk of patient harm resulting from falls by assessing and periodically reassessing each patients risk for falling and taking action to address any identified risks.
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Would you rather move a seriously ill patient with chest pain and shortness of breath from one room to the next so he or she can be monitored or bring the monitor to that patient?
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In 1999, Presbyterian Hospital of Dallas had a denial rate of 1.12% of gross revenue at year end. The denial rate began to decline steadily following the implementation of a denials management team and process improvement teams, both of which include members of the case management staff. The process has saved millions of dollars. For fiscal year 2003, the denial rate has dropped to 0.2% of gross revenue.
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When it comes to improving quality, sometimes the simplest and least expensive measures work best, reports Earl Kurashige, RN, project manager for Qualis Health, a nonprofit health care quality improvement organization based in Seattle.
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Descriptions of the following positons: Payer specialists, Placement specialist, Denials management specialist, Staff assistants and Department secretary.
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In this first part of a two-part series on benchmarking, we tell about two hospitals that achieved dramatic reductions in length of stay (LOS). Next month, we discuss how to speed up admissions by addressing virtual capacity issues with the entire hospital.
