Infection Control
Study Finds Lapses in Infection Control Practices at Ambulatory Surgical Centers
An assessment of nearly 70 ambulatory surgical centers in three states found that lapses in infection control were common, including for practices such as hand hygiene, injection and medication safety, and equipment reprocessing, according to a study in the June 9 issue of JAMA.
Leadership
Allscripts and Eclipsys to Merge, Creating New Healthcare Information Technology Leader
Allscripts, the leading provider of clinical software, information and connectivity solutions for physicians, and Eclipsys, a leading enterprise provider of solutions and services for hospitals and clinicians, announced a definitive agreement to merge in an all-stock transaction valued at approximately $1.3 billion.
Patient Safety
Hospital Will Deploy Latest Version Featuring Innovative One Click Updates to Streamline Maintenance of Evidence-based Order Sets
Wolters Kluwer Health, a leading global provider of information for healthcare professionals and students, announced that Sibley Memorial Hospital has selected ProVation® Order Sets, powered by UpToDate® Decision Support, as its electronic order set solution.
Patient Safety
EDIMS and Clara Maass Medical Center Selected to Provide Medical Care Services at Red Bull Arena
Clara Maass Medical Center (CMMC), a 445-bed Belleville, N.J.-based hospital and affiliate of the Saint Barnabas Health Care System, announced that it has entered an agreement with the new soccer stadium in Harrison, N.J., Red Bull Arena, to provide emergency medical services at each arena event, including the New York Red Bulls’ soccer games.
Technology
Innovative Software Cuts Costs and Time for States to Report Hospital Quality Information to the Public
The Department of Health & Human Services’ (HHS’s) Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) unveiled MONAHRQ—My Own Network Powered by AHRQ—a free, MS® Windows®-based software application that significantly reduces the cost and time a State, hospital or other organization would need to spend to compile, analyze and post data on quality of hospital care, its cost and how that care is used.
Accreditation & Regulation
Joint Commission Alert: Violence Rising at Health Care Facilities
A new Joint Commission Sentinel Event Alert warns that health care facilities today are being confronted with steadily increasing rates of crime, including assault, rape, and murder.
Patient Safety
Expecting More Medical Errors Due to Health Care Reform, Safety Expert Steve Harden Releases Patient’s Manual on Getting Mistake-Free Care
Nationally recognized patient safety expert Steve Harden has released his step-by-step guide to getting safer health care. The book, “Never Go to the Hospital Alone – and other insider safety secrets for getting mistake-free care from your doctor and hospital” is an in-depth, consumer-friendly guide on how to avoid being one of the 100,000 people who will die accidentally this year due to medical error.
Medication Safety
Pfizer and Epocrates Partner to Give Healthcare Providers Access to Medical Information Specialists for Medication Questions
Pfizer Inc. and Epocrates, Inc., announced a collaboration to give healthcare providers (HCPs) mobile access to the Pfizer Medical Information Group to obtain scientific answers to their product questions or to report an adverse event.
Patient Safety
NPSF’s Patient Safety Congress and Community Engagement
I look forward each spring to attending the National Patient Safety Foundation’s (NPSF) Patient Safety Congress for great education and networking opportunities. I especially look forward to the pre-conference programs NPSF offers, which this year (May 17–19) added a half-day on medical simulation to the customary full-day sessions on leadership and community engagement.
Patient Safety
Emergency Nurses Release New Guidelines for Patient Transfers
The Emergency Nurses Association’s (ENA) Institute for Quality, Safety and Injury Prevention announced the release its new Safer Handoff Guidelines to help facilitate safer transfer of patients between long-term and emergency care facilities.