-
New systems and processes can make a big difference in trimming wait times and changing customer perceptions in the ED. However, administrators in the enviable position of being able to design a brand new ED facility have an opportunity to create patient-friendly environments that also cater to their own characteristics in terms of flow processes and volume.
-
Busy EDs are increasingly relying on temporary staff to cope with nursing shortages, unanticipated spikes in volume, and other personnel challenges, but the practice is coming at a steep price, according to research from Johns Hopkins University (JHU) School of Medicine in Baltimore, MD.
-
Having recently completed an instructor course in ICD-10, I am still processing the magnitude of the transition to this new system.
-
Hospitals have been accustomed to dealing with sporadic drug shortages for more than a decade, but now both pharmacists and clinicians are scrambling to keep up with a problem that has proven to be unpredictable and challenging.
-
There was no one precipitating study or finding that prompted the Oakbrook Terrace, IL-based Joint Commission (JC) to issue a Sentinel Event Alert regarding the radiation risks of diagnostic imaging, stresses Ana Pujols McKee, MD, the JC's executive vice president and chief medical officer.
-
One of the ways busy EDs are attempting to manage long wait times is by enabling patients who do not need immediate care to make an appointment to be seen in the ED one or two hours in advance.
-
In addition to tracking drug shortages, the Drug Information Service at the University of Utah Healthcare in Salt Lake City, UT, has also attempted to figure out why the shortages are occurring. The underlying causes aren't all well-understood, but some of the problems are clear.
-
Emergency department managers should take note of a couple of standards that had very high non-compliance rates for the first six months of 2011, according to data released by the Oakbrook Terrace, Il-based Joint Commission.
-
Like EDs, emergency medical service (EMS) providers have also been struggling with drug shortages in recent years.
-
When a medical malpractice lawsuit is filed, the emergency physician (EP) and the hospital are often represented by the same defense counsel, but there are times when this is not in the EP's best interest, according to Robert B. Takla, MD, MBA, FACEP, chief of the Emergency Center at St. John Hospital and Medical Center in Detroit, MI.