Joint Commission Issues Alert on Healthcare Worker Fatigue
The Joint Commission (TJC) has released Sentinel Event Alert 48, “Health Care Worker Fatigue and Patient Safety.” Acknowledging that “many factors contribute to fatigue, including but not limited to insufficient staffing and excessive workloads,” TJC states that “the purpose of this Sentinel Event Alert is to address the effects and risks of an extended work day and of cumulative days of extended work hours.”
Training Solutions for Healthcare Organizations Applying to the Department of Health and Human Services’ Health Care Innovation Challenge
Denver—Medical Simulation Corporation (MSC) offers guideline-based simulation training solutions for health care organizations seeking funding through the Health Care Innovation Challenge.
Cautious Patient Foundation Launches Program to Help Patients Remember Medical Instructions and Improve Outcomes
Houston—The Cautious Patient Foundation announced a new national program designed to help patients remember their doctors’ medical instructions. Known as “Your Doctor’s Advice” (YDA), the program provides an easy-to-use, high-tech solution to a major contributing factor in patient noncompliance and poor medical outcomes.
Cardinal Health Launches Innovative Barcode Administration to Help Hospitals Bridge Medication Safety Gaps
New Orleans— At the 46th Annual Midyear Clinical Meeting and Exhibition for the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP), Cardinal Health launched BarCode360, a solution that supports hospitals’ medication safety initiatives by making it easier, more timely and cost efficient to order medications and ensure more unit-dose medications can be scanned at the patient bedside.
EScreenz™ Improves Communication and Enhances Patient Safety
Rochester, New York—EScreenz™ is a new internal communication solution that transforms screensaver technology into an effective communication medium. Originally developed for hospitals, EScreenz broadcasts multiple slide show messages on desktops, laptops – even big screens – throughout a facility across various locations. Intranet, Internet and SharePoint sites are enhanced because users can click on the screensaver to directly access any web page or document online.
Clinical Decision Support Tools’ Impact on Healthcare Still Expanding
New Orleans—With new EMR infrastructure under their heels and tightening budgets under their belts, providers are looking to new clinical decision support (CDS) tools to give better—not more—healthcare. But do CDS tools deliver? For the new KLAS report, Clinical Decision Support 2011: Understanding the Impact, KLAS interviewed 344 providers to rate their CDS tools’ performance and better understand the influence of these new CDS tools on patient care.
PharMEDium Adds O.R. Medication Verification System
New Orleans—PharMEDium announced the first generation solution designed to support medication safety and documentation in the Operating Room (O.R.). PharMEDium has developed the first bar code scanner to support medication verification administration.
Northwest Michigan Surgery Center Selects RTLS from Versus
Traverse City, Michigan—Michigan’s largest surgery center, Northwest Michigan Surgery Center recently selected the Versus Advantages™ Real-time Locating System (RTLS) to help improve the patient care experience. Key focus areas include relaying patient status information to families in the waiting room and automated process flow management for clinical staff.
GE, Microsoft to Launch Joint Venture Aimed at Global Healthcare System Transformation
Barrington, Illinois, and Redmond, Washington—General Electric Company (NYSE: GE), through its healthcare IT business, and Microsoft Corp. (NASDAQ: MSFT) announced plans to create a joint venture aimed at helping healthcare organizations and professionals use real-time, system-wide intelligence to improve healthcare quality and the patient experience.
Don Berwick Receives 2011 Picker Award for Excellence
Orlando, Florida—The Picker Award for Excellence, which recognizes outstanding achievement in promoting and furthering patient-centered care, was awarded to Dr. Don Berwick on Wednesday, Dec. 7, the last day of the 23rd annual national forum hosted by the Institute for Healthcare Improvement, which Dr. Berwick cofounded in 1989.