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Electronic health records (EHRs) often do not contain advance directives, documentation of the advance care planning process, or other information that can help guide decision-making at the end of life.
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All practitioners should anticipate and plan for incidental findings so that patients, research participants, and consumers are informed ahead of time about what to expect, and so that incidental findings are aptly communicated if they are found, according to a report from the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues.
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The primary ethical consideration when approaching families for organ donation is to ensure that the donation authorization process is voluntary and that it respects the wishes of those who want to donate.
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The quality of palliative care training in critical care medicine programs and the use of bedside tools were independently associated with reduced intensive care unit (ICU) use at the end of life.
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A growing number of health care workers are coming into their profession with childhood vaccination against hepatitis B virus (HBV).
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In an ambitious attempt to see if patient safety successes can go beyond individual units and even entire facilities, the Joint Commission Center for Transforming Healthcare is partnering with 20 hospitals in South Carolina.
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Joint Commission Resources (JCR) has released a new, free guide to help hospital executives and physician leaders implement and sustain safe practices. Produced by the JCR Hospital Engagement Network (HEN), the guide is part of the federal Partnership for Patients initiative to improve the quality, safety and affordability of healthcare.
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For the past 10 years, the United States has been wrestling with a resurgence of pertussis as outbreaks strike in different states. In 2013, cases subsided in most of Minnesota, but spiked in Texas and North Carolina, for example. California reported 2,372 cases, 132 hospitalizations and one death of a two-month-old.
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With infections related to contaminated endoscopes a recurrent problem in health care, the Joint Commission and several other groups and associations are reiterating the importance of reprocessing procedures.
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Revised compendium guidelines to prevent catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) include some new socio-adaptive and technical strategies for infection preventionists to consider.