Model Standards for Skilled Nursing Homes
The model presented herein admittedly constitutes a “respectable draft” only, setting out standards that push toward service excellence and focusing on the best interests of customers: the residents who’ve chosen a nursing facility to be their 24/7 care-based home for their remaining time in this world.
Sharps Injuries: How Technology Can Reduce One of Healthcare’s Most Under-Reported Issues
Needlestick injuries, which fit into the broader category of sharps injuries, can harm healthcare workers by exposing them to blood and other hazardous materials, including infections from hepatitis C, hepatitis B, and HIV, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
A Systems Approach to Person-Centered Healthcare: Lessons From End of Life
Much like the Institute of Medicine’s seminal report, To Err Is Human, which catalyzed healthcare around a systems approach to reducing preventable harm, the NQF report highlights actionable opportunities to scale efforts that have demonstrated the ability to improve quality, value, and safety.
Study: Better Controls, Not Testing, Crucial to Worker Safety During Pandemic
Certain areas of the country are experiencing an increase in the number of COVID-19 cases, while other areas, including the Northeast, have been enjoying a lull in their positive case numbers. However, as colder weather sets in and the population is driven inside, the number of cases is expected to rise as indoor face-to-face interactions increase.
Six Tests for Physician Leadership
The consolidation trend will demand strong leadership from physicians at the helm of these evolving models—as well as physician employees who want to drive their practice toward best practices for navigating future challenges.
How Augmented Intelligence and NLP Can Help Researchers Identify Rare Diseases
Sometimes critical information is overlooked, and a rare disease is not diagnosed until all other more common diagnoses have been ruled out. Unfortunately, a late diagnosis can make a substantial—even life-or-death—difference in a patient’s outcome.
Wear a Mask. If Only It Were That Simple.
After analyzing comprehensive data on mask policies, researchers led by Chris Adolph, a professor of political science and statistics, found that having a Republican governor would predict a 30-day delay in recommending mask policies. In a state that is also ideologically conservative, the delay would be closer to 40 days. A state’s death rate or infection rate had a much weaker influence.
TJC Releases Advice to Protect Well-Being of Healthcare Workers During Pandemic
The accreditor has joined the fight for protecting the mental and physical well-being of healthcare workers by releasing a guide designed to help staff support themselves, as well as help managers support them during the tough times of the pandemic, which is likely to stretch well into 2021 and perhaps beyond.
Waiting Room Safety: Infection, Furniture, and Power Outlets
Cleaning and keeping a healthcare waiting room safe for patients is a difficult task, says Jennifer Cowel, RN, MHS, a former Joint Commission executive and CEO of Patton Healthcare Consulting. Many elements need to be considered: furniture, electrical outlets, sanitizer dispensers, toys, and high-touch objects. And unlike patient rooms, there’s no turnover time between people where the space can be cleaned or checked.
NQF Report Offers Guidance on Reporting Measurement Systems
Using feedback from patients, patient advocates, purchasers, public and private payers, clinicians, provider groups, measure developers and implementers, statisticians, and health services researchers, the group looked at how standard measures used in healthcare assessment can be combined in a system to improve health outcomes and drive high-value care.