5 Types of PPE and How Your Staff is Misusing Them
By John Palmer Train your workers how to use the tools that protect them. One of the first things that a student learns in medical school, one of the first thing a worker learned on the job, and perhaps the most important thing you, as a safety professional can be a pest about with your … Continued
Understanding of Human Over-Reliance on Technology
The implementation of information technology in medication-use systems is widely accepted as a way to reduce adverse drug events by decreasing human error (Mahoney, Berrard-Collins, Coleman, Amaral, & Cotter, 2007). Technology examples include computerized order entry systems, clinical decision support systems, robotic dispensing, profiled automated dispensing cabinets (ADCs), smart infusion pumps, and barcode scanning of medications during compounding, dispensing, ADC restocking, and administration.
As the Threat of Sepsis Intensifies, Experts Push For a Faster Response
A deadly infection that has lingered throughout healthcare for the last several decades is finding a foothold at the national level thanks to recently updated definitions that offer clinicians a more targeted approach for detection and prevention.
Nine Ways to Prevent Physician Burnout
The high rate of burnout and unengaged physicians and nurses is an increasing concern for the healthcare industry. Burnout is characterized by exhaustion, cynicism, and reduced effectiveness. It’s also a proven influence on care quality, patient safety, physician turnover, and patient satisfaction.
U.S. Blood Collection System Faces Multiple Threats
Less-invasive surgeries and new drugs have stanched demand, but more government oversight is needed to safeguard the supply of blood to hospitals.
The Next Wave of Patient Safety? High Reliability.
Healthcare experts say the industry may have squeezed all it can from technological advancements and standardization, giving way to a new patient safety movement that will shift the focus toward high reliability.
Long-Stalled FDA Reform Sits on Senate’s Lame-Duck Calendar
Republicans in Congress are pushing to pass long-stalled legislation by January that gives the Food and Drug Administration new powers to more rapidly approve drugs and medical devices.
After Tort Reform, Keeping Hospital Care Safe for Patients
Communication-and-resolution programs can be tools for preserving patient safety, not just for avoiding litigation.
Study: 50 Million Patients Suffer Postop Complications Worldwide, 1.5 Million Die
A new study found that out of the 310 million surgery patients who receive surgery every year, 50 million suffer postoperative complications and more than 1.5 million die from those complications. Surprisingly, patients in low- and middle-income countries were less likely to experience complications than those in high-income nations.
Four Years After Fungal Meningitis Outbreak, Compound Pharmacy Safety Concerns Linger
In 2012, a fungal meningitis outbreak was linked to the New England Compounding Center (NECC) in Framingham, Massachusetts, that would eventually lead to more than 750 infections in 20 states and 64 deaths, according to the CDC. The publicized outbreak thrust compounded medicine into the public eye, prompting many facilities and states to review oversight … Continued