Researchers Link 266K Avertable Deaths to COVID Vaccination Rates
The rate of COVID mortality in the nation’s 10 least-vaccinated states – 145 per 100,000 population — was nearly double the COVID mortality rate of the 10 most-vaccinated states (74.5/100,000), according to the letter which was published Friday in JAMA Network.
Employee Contact Tracing Helps Mount Sinai Control COVID-19 Spread
Writing in the November issue of The Lancet Digital Health, researchers form the New York-based health system describe the creation of the Mount Sinai Employee Health COVID-19 REDCap Registry, a cloud-based digital framework using a web application known as Research Electronic Data Capture.
Navigating Our Way out of the Acute Pandemic Hand Hygiene Slump: A Back-to-Basics Approach
While hand hygiene is the most foundational practice, it is also one of the most difficult to improve. Educating a workforce on hand hygiene—which many frontline caregivers should be performing dozens, if not a hundred times per day—is a significant challenge.
13.9% of Adults Who Test Positive for COVID-19 Experience Long COVID, Study Finds
The new research article, which was published by JAMA Network Open, features survey data collected from more than 16,000 adults who experienced a test-confirmed COVID-19 illness.
CMS Revises COVID-19 Vaccination Memos to Combine Survey Instructions as Infection Rates Decline
One of the revisions, highlighted in red, notes that “egregious noncompliance” such as more than half the staff unvaccinated, will be cited as a condition level deficiency. Instances of noncompliance where “good faith” efforts to comply are ongoing would only be a standard-level deficiency.
PSQH Quick Poll 2022: Taking the Pulse of Infection Prevention Efforts
As part of PSQH’s celebration of International Infection Prevention Week, we decided to reach out to our readers with a few questions to find out the state of infection prevention efforts. The Quick Poll had a total of 209 respondents.
PHE Renewed Again but Start Planning Now for Flexibility to End
The next renewal date would be on or before Wednesday, January 11, 2023. Just before the PHE was renewed in October, CMS published a blog “Creating a Roadmap for the End of the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency,” with attached links to memos about the waivers for each provider type.
The Way Forward: Coronavirus Remains Focal Point for Healthcare Organizations
Now that COVID-19 has reached an endemic phase, one of the biggest challenges facing healthcare organizations is keeping communities focused on containing the virus, says Janet Tomcavage, MS, executive vice president and chief nurse executive at Geisinger Health.
Revisiting Staff Respite Spaces
Offering staff and care providers a respite space where they can take a break from the demands of their role is a small gesture that greatly increases their satisfaction at work and directly affects the care they give to patients. The ability to rest and recharge promotes safer, more efficient operations, resulting in better outcomes and fewer medical errors.
Researcher: ‘The Levees Have Broken’ at Emergency Departments
The new studies examine boarding of patients in emergency departments before they are moved to inpatient beds and patients who left without being seen (LWBS), the latter presumably because of ED crowding and long wait times. The Joint Commission has deemed extended boarding of patients in the ED as a patient safety risk, with boarding recommended not to exceed four hours. Relatively high LWBS rates can have significant negative consequences for patients if they are deferring care for acute conditions.