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Study: Surgery Centers Handled COVID-19 Patients Safely
Data suggest there may be no increased risk for an asymptomatic, COVID-19-positive patient to go forward with surgery, although more research is needed before surgeons can create evidence-based guidelines.
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Researchers Outline Effective Ways to Prescribe Opioids, Reduce Waste
Opioid overdoses surged during the COVID-19 pandemic, a problem surgery professionals can help solve by paying greater attention to prescription opioid misuse and abuse.
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The Struggle to Immunize Long-Term Care Staff
Almost two-thirds of healthcare workers in thousands of skilled nursing facilities have turned down the COVID-19 vaccine, even though the mortality rates of long-term care residents are among the highest of any population. Historically, long-term care workers have shunned influenza vaccinations, citing skepticism about the vaccine’s efficacy or that they do not get the flu. The COVID-19 vaccine raises its own set of suspicions. -
Safety Protocol Can Prevent Self-Harm Incidents
Patients often present to the ED with behavioral health concerns, but psychiatric experts recognize the environment is hardly optimal for easing anxiety or calming a troubled mind. Further, patients with psychiatric concerns often wait in the ED for extended periods before they are connected with appropriate care, a time that can be fraught with danger for individuals at risk for self-harm. Recognizing the safety challenges at issue, a multidisciplinary team at Massachusetts General Hospital developed and implemented a protocol aimed at protecting such patients. -
Hospital Reduces HAPI Rate by Half with Huddles, Rounds
A hospital that had struggled to reduce hospital-acquired pressure injuries (HAPIs) has found success with an approach that emphasizes empowering frontline staff and consistent, structured huddles. After one year, the culture has changed, and HAPIs have been cut by 50%.
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Tips to Improve Relationships with Patients Over the Phone
Phone communications jumped in importance over the past year of the pandemic, but there are tactics case managers can use to improve their technique and build rapport with patients or clients over the phone. One tip is to listen for audible clues about the person’s mood and energy level.
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Shared Decision-Making Also Can Work with Patients’ Guardians
Patients often lack the cognitive capacity to make their own decisions. In those cases, a family member or another person might be legally appointed medical power of attorney or guardian.
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Tips for Coaching Patients to Talk with Doctors
Many patients find it challenging to speak with their physicians and ask questions. Case managers can serve as a go-between for patients and as an interpreter, teaching patients how to make the most of these doctor-patient encounters. -
Develop Best Practices for Shared Decision-Making
Case managers are learning more about how to include patients in their care transitions, as part of shared decision-making. The first step in shared decision-making is to assess the patient’s situation, followed by educating the patient about all facets of their self-care and health management. -
Hospital at Home Model Benefits from Traditional QI Approach
The Hospital at Home care model is gaining favor with hospitals and health systems as a way to provide hospital-level care in a patient’s home while lowering costs by almost one-third and reducing complications. The approach is receiving more attention now as a way to avoid asking patients to come to the hospital during the COVID-19 pandemic.