Lessons Learned From the RaDonda Vaught Case
Change does not happen overnight; it takes time, strategy, and concerted effort. Take the U.S. commercial aviation industry, for instance. Over the past 20 years, the sector has decreased its overall fatality rates by 95%. This was achieved with the support of the Federal Aviation Administration, which worked with the industry to form a number of programs that monitor for and ensure compliance, like the Commercial Aviation Safety Team.
Treating Patients as Individuals: The Impact of Precision Dosing at the Bedside
To realize the full promise of precision medicine, clinicians must leverage patient data not only to identify the right therapy, but also to determine the precise dose that maximizes the patient’s benefit-to-risk ratio. In the era of value-based care, every facet of precision medicine, from diagnostic technologies to targeted therapies and precision dosing, will play a pivotal role in improving care quality.
Reducing Risk in the Pharmacy: A Key Step to Improving Patient Safety
A larger patient volume, coupled with staffing shortages, could bring on a crisis in advanced disease care across the board. Add to this persistent supply chain issues, manufacturing labor shortages, and shipping disruptions, and you have a perfect storm that could mean greater risks to patient care.
PSQH Quick Poll 2022: Taking the Pulse of Nursing’s Impact on Patient Safety
As part of National Nurses Week, PSQH reached out to our readers with a few questions about how nursing impacts patient safety and healthcare quality. The Quick Poll had a total of 212 respondents.
The Impact of Cost on Medication Adherence
Some 50% of Americans don’t take their medications as directed by their doctor, for any of a host of reasons. This non-adherence leads to preventable hospitalizations and preventable deaths, and costs 16% or $500 billion of the entire U.S. healthcare spend every year.
A Better Alternative for Combating Opioid Misuse Without Restricting Drug Access for Pain Patients
The new CDC draft removes the 2016 recommended ceilings on prescription doses for chronic pain patients and instead encourages doctors to exercise their best judgment. Even though the previous dosing ceilings were recommendations, they led to unintended consequences: States codified them, and physicians concerned with criminal or civil penalties misapplied the rigid standards by tapering patients too quickly or even refusing to provide treatment.
Former Nurse’s Criminal Conviction Will Have a ‘Chilling Effect’ on Healthcare
Vaught was convicted Friday of a 2017 fatal drug error after a three-day trial that continues to capture the attention of nurses across the country, many of whom worry that the case could set a precedent of criminalizing medical errors. Vaught, scheduled to be sentenced May 13, faces three to six years in prison for neglect and one to two years for negligent homicide.
Staffing Shortages Aren’t Just a Business Problem, They’re a Patient Safety Threat
Since 2020, the healthcare industry has lost nearly half a million workers, exacerbating staffing shortages that existed prior to the start of the pandemic. One of the hardest-hit areas is the pharmacy. As of September 2021, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projected there would be 43,000 pharmacist and pharmacy technician job openings each year throughout the next decade.
Decentralizing Clinical Trials Through Disruption
Clinical trials are expensive, take significant time, and can run into any number of challenges and delays. The average drug study will see a 30% patient dropout rate. What is needed, according to Virginia-based Jeeva Informatics, is more diverse patient enrollment, better engagement, and increased evidence generation.
A Collaborative Effort to Improve Antimicrobial Stewardship and Beyond
Pharmacies need a streamlined clinical and operational option to integrate data and deliver actionable analytics in one place rather than across disparate sources. This is particularly important in infection prevention and antimicrobial stewardship programs, where providers need to identify indications, treatment options, resistance considerations, potential drug interactions, and pharmacology.