CMS Updates Guidelines for Ambulatory Surgical Centers—Can Hospital SOM Be Far Behind?
The changes were published in the June 3 memo QSO-22-16-ASC, which also notes that the last time Appendix L was updated was in late 2019, and that “currently, the online version of Appendix L has several placeholders in the tags that note ‘guidance pending and will be updated in a future release’.”
New Program for Kidney Disease Patients Stresses Personalized Care
In a partnership with Denver-based Strive Health, the Cincinnati-based health system, which includes 50 hospitals across several states, will use a technology platform and “Kidney Heroes” interdisciplinary care teams composed of nurse practitioners, dietitians, pharmacists, care coordinators and licensed clinical social workers to create a personalized care plan for patients. Among other things, the platform will allow care providers to chart the progression of the disease and the patient’s risk for hospitalization.
CMS Revises COVID-19 Data Reporting for Psychiatric, Rehabilitation Hospitals
The memo QSO-21-03-Hospitals/CAHs was updated May 27 to note that the data elements for psychiatric and rehabilitation hospitals that had been required weekly is now required only once annually and should include the data for the previous week, according to CMS.
Mistreatment and Discrimination Take Burnout Toll on Physicians
Physician burnout was a concern before the coronavirus pandemic, which has exacerbated the problem. Earlier research has linked physician burnout to negative personal and professional consequences. The new research article, which was published by JAMA Network Open, is based on data collected from more than 6,500 physicians. The study has several key findings.
PSQH: The Podcast Episode 54 – Preventing Burnout Through a Strong Practice Culture
On episode 54 of PSQH: The Podcast, Dr. Natasha Beauvais, CEO of Northern Virginia Family Practice Associates, talks about how cultivating a strong practice culture can prevent clinician burnout.
3 Ways a Coordinated Approach Can Solve the Nursing Shortage
Though COVID-19 narrowed the focus on the nursing shortage, other conditions have contributed to it far longer than the pandemic: a higher education system that is training too few nurses; workforce conditions; and demographic factors, such as aging Baby Boomers and increased life expectancy, the report notes.
Urgent Call Made to Improve Patient Safety
Patient safety has been a pressing issue in healthcare since 1999, with the publication of the landmark report To Err Is Human: Building a Safer Health System. Despite two decades of attention, estimates of annual patient deaths due to medical errors have risen steadily to as many as 440,000 lives, a figure that was reported in the Journal of Patient Safety in 2013.
Monkeypox: Take Standard, Airborne, and Droplet Precautions
While the primary risk is from close contact with bodily fluids, including contaminated linens, “because of the theoretical risk of airborne transmission of monkeypox virus, airborne precautions should be applied whenever possible,” said the CDC. “If a patient presenting for care at a hospital or other health care facility is suspected of having monkeypox, infection control personnel should be notified immediately.”
Healthcare Executives Plot a Long-Term Strategy for Hospital at Home Concept
The Acute Hospital Care at Home program was developed by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to reduce expensive hospitalizations and give patients the opportunity to receive care at home. Healthcare organizations were encouraged to launch these programs by CMS waivers enacted during the COVID-19 public health emergency that boost reimbursements and reduce barriers on the use of telehealth and other services.
Hospitals More Inclined to Offer $$$ Incentives to Fill RN Openings
Some 67% of chief nursing officers and other hospital senior leaders surveyed are offering sign-on bonuses and 57% said they have improved their pay packages. Those percentages are significantly higher than in 2019, before COVID-19, when just 28% said improved pay packages were part of their recruitment and retention strategy.