ED Management – August 1, 2009
August 1, 2009
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Chest pain patients in crowded EDs suffer more post-admit complications
Patients with heart attacks and other forms of chest pain are three to five times more likely to experience serious complications after hospital admission when they are treated in a crowded ED, according to a new study published online in the journal Academic Emergency Medicine. -
ED practices 'golden rule' with hospital staff
"Every doctor in our group tries to put themselves in the shoes of the medical staff, and ask themselves what they would want done prior to admission and how they would want their patients treated," says Ben Johnston, MD, president of the emergency physician group at Morris (IL) Hospital. -
Education reduces peds asthma readmits
The medical literature shows that educating children and their parents about asthma can reduce return visits to the ED as well as hospital admissions, and experts say that the ED may well be the best place to provide that education. -
D-to-D slashed 85% â" in seven weeks!
The ED at Twin County Regional Hospital in Galax, VA, succeeded in cutting its door-to-doc time from 121 minutes to 19 minutes in just seven weeks â while annual volume was climbing from 19,000 to about 30,000 â by combining a process improvement plan designed by a health care consulting firm, the leadership of the hospital CEO, and the ED's medical director. -
Personal communications can be discoverable
Physicians' personal notes about a patient's care. Incident reports if a patient is harmed. Information given verbally or in writing to the hospital's risk managers. -
Do's and don'ts for physicians who are sued
According to Ken Braxton, JD, a health care attorney at Dallas-based Stewart Stimmel, ED physicians, when notified of a possible lawsuit or claim, should avoid all of the following actions: -
ACEP releases H1N1 strategic plan
Two out of the three pandemics in the 20th century made a first pass and then returned in a more virulent "second wave." -
Proposed OPPS rule offers 1%-2% pay updates
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services' (CMS) proposed payment policies and payment rate updates for services furnished to beneficiaries during calendar year 2010 in hospital outpatient departments under the outpatient prospective payment system (OPPS) should have no major impact on ED managers, according to Barbara K. Tomar, federal affairs director of the American College of Emergency Physicians, Washington, DC. -
ED Accreditation Update: Joint Commission proposed requirements on culture, communication out for field review
After months of anticipation, The Joint Commission has released its "proposed requirements to advance effective communication, cultural competence, and patient-centered care" for field review. If approved, they will represent some significant new challenges for ED managers. -
ED Accreditation Update: SII simplifies language, structure of standards
While ED managers have awaited the results of The Joint Commission's Strategic Improvement Initiative (SII) with some trepidation, their fears by and large might have been unfounded based on some early comments.