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When hospitals hire more nurses with four-year degrees, patient deaths following common surgeries decrease, according to new research by the Center for Health Outcomes and Policy Research at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing in Philadelphia, as reported in the March issue of Health Affairs. Less than half the nations nurses (45%) have baccalaureate degrees, according to the most recent data available (2008).
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While generally citing continued reductions in key health care associated infections (HAIs), a recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) surveillance report also revealed some outliers with high infection rates.
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Entering an overly complete history and examination on a patient presenting with a minor or simple complaint is one danger with electronic medical records (EMRs), especially when time-stamping makes such a lengthy examination unlikely, warns John Davenport, MD, JD, physician risk manager of a California-based health maintenance organization.
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The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is adding a boxed warning to the drug label of codeine-containing products to address a known safety concern with codeine use in certain children after tonsillectomy and/or adenoidectomy.
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A recently reported case of hepatitis B virus transmission from a chronically infected surgeon to as many as eight patients underscores the need for providers to know their HBV status and seek the counsel of an expert review panel if they perform invasive or so called exposure-prone procedures, public health officials emphasize.
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Concerns about cases involving provider liability should not deter clinicians from off-label prescribing, says Samantha L. Prokop, Esq., an attorney with Brennan, Manna & Diamond, in Akron, OH.
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When was the last time you updated your antiquated policies and unimaginable procedures? Do you even have a policy that address tweets? No, you dont.
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Facilities accredited by the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC) have new requirements as of March 1, 2013, including one to document all outcomes related to adverse reactions to drugs and materials.
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The same adverse events seem to show up every year on national and state lists, and providers might be asking why, with all the emphasis on patient safety, these problems persist.
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Colorectal surgical patients often are discharged from the hospital with vague guidance on how to recognize complications, but researchers at the Michael E. DeBakey Veterans Administration (VA) Medical Center and Baylor College of Medicine, both in Houston, aim to change that scenario.
