ED Management – November 1, 2006
November 1, 2006
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Coroner calls ED death a homicide — Some predict chilling effect
It seems that the legal ED horror stories never end. Just a few months after a Florida family sued over the death of a stroke victim who they say waited too long for a neurosurgeon, a Lake County, IL, coroner's office has ruled an ED death a homicide that was the "result of gross deviations from the standard of care that a reasonable person would have exercised in this situation." -
Diversion's not a problem for this ED
The ED at Tahlequah (OK) City Hospital has been on diversion for just one hour in the past two years, says Brian Hail, RN, director of the department. According to Hail, his department has combined the good fortune of close proximity to another hospital with an array of targeted strategies to achieve such an impressive statistic. -
How much does poor quality cost your ED?
Every ED manager is concerned about maintaining high-quality standards in their department and recognizes the impact poor quality can have on outcomes and patient satisfaction. However, say the experts, only a small minority recognizes and calculates the impact poor quality can have on their bottom line. -
How to calculate the cost of poor quality
The following is a hypothetical example to illustrate how to calculate the cost of poor quality (COPQ) and the financial impact of improved quality in the ED. The example was provided by Diana S. Contino, RN, MBA, CEN, FAEN, manager of public services-health care for Costa Mesa, CA-based BearingPoint, which provides consulting, application services, technology solutions, and managed services for health care clients and others. -
Satisfaction Rx: Run hospital like an ED
Numerous emergency medicine experts have noted that a number of ED overcrowding and flow problems really are hospitalwide problems; few, however, have recommended running a hospital "like" an ED to solve those problems. -
New CDC survey results echo report from IOM
A new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) reinforces the assertions of a report on the state of emergency medicine by the Institute of Medicine (IOM) that crowding in the nation's EDs has reached nearly epidemic proportions. -
ACEP elects new officers
The American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) has installed a new president and elected a new president-elect during the organization's annual meeting in New Orleans. Brian Keaton, MD, FACEP, of Akron, OH, assumed the presidency, and Linda L. Lawrence, MD, FACEP, of Fairfield, CA, has been elected president-elect. -
ED Accreditation Update: To comply with new patient safety goal, here's how to assess patients for suicide risk
Do you have a process in place in your ED to identify patients at risk for suicide? If you don't have one in place by Jan. 1, 2007, you won't be in compliance with a new National Patient Safety Goal that requires hospitals to assess patients at risk for suicide. -
ED Accreditation Update: JCAHO clarifies confusion over goal
There has been a significant amount of confusion among ED managers and others regarding a new national patient safety goal on patient suicides, according to the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. -
ED Accreditation Update: Tips on meeting standard for organ donation policy
Hospitals are scrambling to develop a policy regarding organ donation after cardiac death (DCD) in order to be in compliance with a revised standard from the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations that goes into effect Jan. 1, 2007. -
ED Accreditation Update: Joint Commission revises look-alike/sound-alike list
For the first time in several years, the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Health Care Organizations has revised the look-alike/sound-alike drug list. -
ED Accreditation Update: Joint Commission, Quality Forum announce winners
The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations and the National Quality Forum have announced the winners of the Joint M. Eisenberg Patient Safety and Quality Awards. -
2006 Salary Survey Results: Times are good for emergency staffers, but for managers, the frustration continues
The continuing shortage of nurses and a growing shortage of physicians has created a twofold challenge for ED managers, say the experts. The first challenge: How to attract and retain talented staff. The second: Dealing with the sad fact that while staff salaries are surging, ED director and manager compensation lags behind.