Six Strategies to Strengthen Post-COVID Infection Prevention
Many groups are laying out strategies for better mitigating disease transmission in future pandemics, ranging from the White House’s National COVID Preparedness Plan to the Rockefeller Foundation’s Roadmap for Living With COVID. Meanwhile, Dr. Tom Talbot, chief hospital epidemiologist at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, encourages health systems to implement practices for securing more inclusive feedback, standardizing simple practices, and gauging success.
Teaming Up to Improve Interpersonal Communication in Healthcare
Oklahoma State University teamed up with Crucial Learning to address interpersonal communication among its medical students in three main categories: assumptions of incompetence, poor teamwork, and disrespect. The effort focused on the seven most crucial conversations in healthcare, with the goal of empowering staff to better communicate with each other.
Hand Hygiene: What to Consider When Increasing Compliance
While protecting the health and well-being of patients and staff is the top priority for healthcare facilities, it can also be a significant challenge. Even though hospitals use protective measures to reduce the transmission of germs, HAIs and COVID-19 continue to threaten facility occupants.
A Better Alternative for Combating Opioid Misuse Without Restricting Drug Access for Pain Patients
The new CDC draft removes the 2016 recommended ceilings on prescription doses for chronic pain patients and instead encourages doctors to exercise their best judgment. Even though the previous dosing ceilings were recommendations, they led to unintended consequences: States codified them, and physicians concerned with criminal or civil penalties misapplied the rigid standards by tapering patients too quickly or even refusing to provide treatment.
Three Steps to Reducing Health Inequities in the Latino Community
Many factors drive the health disparities affecting the Latino community, and these disparities are further exacerbated by the inaccessibility and unaffordability of U.S. healthcare. While the Affordable Care Act has narrowed some health disparities, Latino adults continue to report significantly higher uninsured rates than other groups. A 2020 Commonwealth Fund study revealed uninsured rates of 24.9% for Latinos, 14.4% for Blacks, and 8.6% for whites.
Defeating Diagnostic Deserts in Conflict Zones and at Home
A pilot project has brought together American and Canadian doctors to remotely train medical personnel in Yemen on patient diagnosis using a portable ultrasound device. Bridge to Health Medical and Dental, an organization empowering low-resource settings to establish low-cost, sustainable solutions for care, teamed up with Butterfly Network to use the latter’s portable ultrasound to help providers improve care for their patients.
Integrating Safety Technology Benefits Hospitals…and Patients
Doctors and nurses may be preoccupied with threats of violence from irate patients or visitors, staff working the night shift may dread the long walk to a remote parking garage, and hospital administrators may be worried about uncontrolled access to valuable equipment and prescription drugs. All of these concerns distract from the mission of any hospital or healthcare facility: the critical work of healing.
Point-of-Care Ultrasound: A Life-Saving Game Changer
Modern ultrasound technology can be a game changer, particularly for remote organizations with limited resources and staff. Point-of-care ultrasound specifically offers portability, ease of use, and immediate access. Sometimes, those benefits can even be a case of life or death.
Treating Patients in Postacute Care: SNF vs. Home
A recent survey published by Brigham and Women’s Hospital revealed a shift in postacute care, with a move from skilled nursing facility (SNF) environments to home-based services. The survey followed 10 participants, randomly assigned to either rehabilitation at home or traditional SNF care. The results: Those recovering at home saw both a decrease in the cost of care and an increase in their activities of daily living, such as personal hygiene and feeding themselves.
How New Health Plan Initiatives in Equity Could Reshape Patient Care and Experience
Currently, many health plan members are not achieving their optimal health outcomes, and this can be manifested by missed preventive care opportunities, less activation in their care, or rating health plans poorly on quality measurement surveys. For health plans and their provider partners, now is the time to shift this dynamic by devoting greater resources toward improving health equity, in combination with other calls for change, including equity initiatives espoused by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and new accreditations offered by the NCQA.