EMP Forms Patient Safety Organization
Research Demonstrates Bacterial Contamination in Pharmacy Robots
AHRQ Develops Common Formats – Hospital Version 1.2
The Joint Commission Enterprise Launches HAI Portal
Enhanced Health IT Teaching Materials Now Available to the Public
“Show Me the Money”
By Carlos Nunez
A curious thing is happening.
As the healthcare conversation moved front and center over the last several years, a correlation developed linking cost and quality. Politicians and providers, payors and patients have embraced these complementary themes as the “one-two punch” that will win the fight to keep our healthcare system safe, solvent and sustainable. As far as punches go, it sounds almost painless: Make the system better and safer, and the savings will follow. Who would argue with that logic?
Now it seems that some prominent voices have started to pivot the conversation toward the need for greater cost control, suggesting that quality and safety efforts alone may not deliver the necessary savings.
Collaboration Announced to Prevent Surgical Site Infections and Other Adverse Outcomes
NIST Releases Technical Guidance for Evaluating Electronic Health Records
An important aspect of any product is how easily someone can use it for its intended purpose, also known as usability. Electronic health records (EHR) that are usable have the potential to improve patient care, which is why the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has outlined formal procedures for evaluating the usability of EHR systems.
Patient Safety Education Program Offers QRC-Enabled Posters
Kimberly-Clark and Safe Care Campaign team with CDC, The Joint Commission’s Speak UpTM Educational Campaign and the Patient Channel to provide consumer education.
AHRQ Offers Free Quality Indicators (TM) Toolkit
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) offers a free toolkit to help hospitals understand and make effective use of the agency’s Quality Indicators (QIs) and Patient Safety Indicators (PSIs). In addition to its focus on these indicators, the toolkit is a general guide to using improvement methods.