FDA Says to Decrease Reuse of Devices, CMS Removes Some Blanket Waivers
Be aware that as COVID-19 cases are declining and vaccination rates are climbing, the emergency waivers and measures approved by the federal government to get through the public health emergency (PHE) will be changing. The FDA sent a notice to hospitals and others April 9 encouraging healthcare organizations to start moving away from the emergency measures taken to preserve and reuse medical devices and other supplies early in the PHE.
PSQH: The Podcast Episode 26 – How Healthcare Facility Design Can Improve Patient Safety
On episode 26 of PSQH: The Podcast, Dr. Tom Schwieterman, vice president of clinical affairs and chief medical officer of Midmark, talks about how healthcare facility design can help improve patient safety.
New Survey Reveals How Hospital Supply Chains Affect Nurses, Patient Safety, and Margins
The report, Nurses: The Secret Factor for Better Supply Chains, an annual market report issued by healthcare inventory provider Syft, highlights hospital supply chain challenges at the point-of-use and key areas that require improvement.
UC Health Shares 4 Lessons Learned from Coronavirus Pandemic
By multiple measures, COVID-19 has challenged healthcare providers more than any other public health crisis since the 1918 influenza pandemic. As the coronavirus pandemic enters its second year, many health systems, hospitals, and physician practices remain in crisis mode. A pair of physician leaders at Cincinnati-based UC Health recently spoke with HealthLeaders to discuss how the health system has grappled with COVID-19.
COVID-19 Pandemic Shakes Public Trust in CDC
Surveys of more than 2,000 people in May and October 2020 show about a 10% drop in trust of the CDC over that period, with the overall population-level trust in the agency falling to the same lower level of trust long held by Black Americans about the agency.
6 Innovations That Are Propelling Health Systems Into the Future
How are hospitals and health systems positioning their organizations for the future in a post-pandemic world? While there are countless ways innovation has accelerated the transformation of healthcare delivery over the past year, this article features six worth noting.
How to Seize on Opportunities to Improve Safety and Patient Experience
There are golden opportunities to improve patient safety and patient experience at healthcare organizations, a new top executive at Grand Rapids, Michigan-based Spectrum Health says.
Yes, You Must Open Doors to Unvaccinated Surveyors
CMS sent out a statement noting that federal and state surveyors must be permitted entry unless they show symptoms of the coronavirus as outlined in earlier infection control guidance regarding surveys. The statement apparently was in answer to a query from The Joint Commission (TJC), which was acting on the behalf of someone else, according to the Health Facilities Management Insider.
IT Contribution to Physician Burnout Remains a Problem
A recent article in the Journal of the American Medical Informatics Association (JAMIA) points out the continuing role of information technology and electronic health record (EHR) usability issues in aggravating clinician burnout. Matt Lambert, MD, is a practicing emergency medicine physician, as well as chief medical officer of Curation Health, a supplier of clinical decision support software to healthcare providers.
Study Shows Racial Disparity in Hospital Patient Safety
The new report, which was conducted by researchers at the Urban Institute with funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, examines 2017 hospital discharge data from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality’s Cost and Utilization Project. The researchers also used AHRQ software to focus on 11 patient safety indicators.