Healthcare Risk Management – August 1, 2007
August 1, 2007
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No-consent study raises concern over patient rights
The federal government is undertaking an ambitious $50 million, five-year research project that will employ a controversial arrangement that avoids the traditional informed consent process, and the whole idea is making some health care providers nervous. -
Color-coded wristbands can be patient safety risk
A good idea for improving patient safety could backfire if you are not careful. -
Concerns cause hospital to tweak color coding plan
One health care provider in Arizona found that staff and patient input can be key to making a color-coded wristband plan work. -
Hospital begins bar coding wristbands for safety
Bar coding is familiar to everyone who shops, with electronic scanners reading product information and price after a quick swipe of the black and white tag through a scanner. -
Closed claim study can show what's really wrong
Failure to communicate is the underlying cause of many malpractice claims, according to a recent closed claim study by the American College of Surgeons (ACS) in Chicago. -
Use standard data forms, allow narratives
When conducting your own closed claim review, follow the advice mentioned in this article for the best results. -
Data help benchmark your reporting and fraud hotlines
Many risk managers use hotlines to encourage reporting of fraud and other potential problems, but how do you know if your hotline is really working? -
HIPAA Regulatory Alert: Privacy advocates say GAO testimony against HHS too soft
While the Government Accountability Office (GAO) criticized the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) for not making enough progress in developing a federal privacy policy, some privacy advocates were quick to say the GAO was not strong enough in its criticism. -
HIPAA Regulatory Alert: HHS launches web site on HIPAA privacy compliance
To coincide with the fourth anniversary of enforcement of the HIPAA Privacy Rule, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) launched a new web site to provide information about how it enforces health information privacy rights and standards compliance. -
HIPAA Regulatory Alert: Audit raises concerns of data security requirements
A U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) audit at Piedmont Hospital in Atlanta is raising concerns in the information technology industry that there may be more HHS enforcement actions relating to HIPAA data security requirements. -
HIPAA Regulatory Alert: Companies auctioning customer records
U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer (D-NY) says a loophole in medical privacy law is allowing pharmacies to "auction off" customer records, including prescriptions, information about medical conditions, Social Security numbers, and insurance records "to the highest bidder." -
Legal Review and Commentary: Hospital's failure to prevent suicide leads to $300,000 settlement
A man was taken to a hospital after nearly committing suicide from an overdose. Although the hospital placed the man on its suicide prevention ward, the patient hung himself in his room two weeks after his admission. -
Legal Review and Commentary: Patient falls in shower after surgery, settles
A woman recovering from surgery in a hospital slipped and fell while taking a shower, which caused her to fracture two fingers.