PSQH: The Podcast Episode 3 – Arizona Surge Line
On episode 3 of PSQH: The Podcast, host Jay Kumar talks to Charles Larsen, RN Senior Director at Banner Health in Phoenix, and Angie Franks, president and CEO of Central Logic, about a new first-in-the-nation service designed to ensure that COVID-19 patients in Arizona receive access to the care they need.
Q&A: Antibiotic Stewardship Takes Step Backward During Pandemic
The problem has been so widespread in U.S. hospitals that regulatory agencies such as The Joint Commission and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) have begun requiring hospitals to establish tighter antimicrobial stewardship programs in an attempt to lower the number of infections.
AOs Ramping Up for Return to Accreditation Surveys
All four hospital accrediting organizations (AOs) followed CMS in March in announcing a suspension of regular survey activity as the coronavirus pandemic swept the nation. Complaint surveys have continued as needed. And at the urging of CMS, were to continue to conduct initial accreditation surveys for new healthcare facilities as a way to increase patient capacity during the COVID-19 national emergency.
Study Shows COVID-19 Body Count 20 Times Higher Than Seasonal Flu Deaths
Between 2013 and 2019, the yearly seasonal influenza deaths ranged from 23,000 to 61,000. However, the actual number of counted influenza deaths over that timespan ranged between 3,448 and 15,620 deaths each year. On average, the researchers said, CDC influenza death estimates are about six times greater than the number of counted deaths.
How to Create an N95 Mask Disinfection Facility for Less Than $15,000
The process is based on a concept from the University of Nebraska and adheres to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines. It involves a commonly used UV-C light robot that VCU already had on hand to decontaminate hospital rooms, and employs materials which the VCU team sourced from The Home Depot, Lowe’s, and a tractor supply store.
How to Use Telehealth in Cancer Care During the Coronavirus Pandemic and Beyond
Telemedicine provides physician practices with a safe method to interact with patients remotely during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Telemedicine also enables physician practices to expand services for patient care such as virtual patient check-in capabilities and remote patient monitoring that collects biometric data.
NIOSH Seeks Comment on Updated List of Hazardous Drugs in Healthcare
The proposal includes a name change and reorganization of drug lists so that not all antineoplastic drugs, most often associated with cancer treatments, are grouped together. Formerly the “NIOSH List of Antineoplastic and Other Hazardous Drugs in Healthcare Settings,” the list will be called more simply the “NIOSH List of Hazardous Drugs in Healthcare Settings, 2020.”
A 3-Point Strategy to Help Strengthen Nurses’ Resiliency
By Rhonda Collins, DNP, RN, FAAN, Chief Nursing Officer, Vocera Each May, I write a CNO Perspective report on a topic that’s top of mind for nurse leaders. Last year, I wrote about reducing cognitive load for nurses and other healthcare professionals. I’ve spent the past year speaking and publishing on this topic, and the … Continued
Eisenberg Patient Safety and Quality Awards Winners Announced
Gordon D. Schiff, MD, an internist, associate director of Brigham and Women’s Center for Patient Safety Research and Practice, and director of the Harvard Medical School Center for Primary Care Harvard Medical School, won the Eisenberg “individual achievement” award.
Coronavirus Care Rationing: ‘It’s Not Just About Ventilators’
There have been several reports of ventilator rationing for coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) patients in Italy and China. Last month, Manhattan, New York–based Northwell Health issued a memo that provided a guideline for clinicians to ration ventilators to COVID-19 patients who were most likely to benefit from the intervention.