Over the last decade, patient handoff procedures have become an integral part of the patient care process, accompanied by a slew of acronyms and standardized procedures meant to improve continuity of care and prevent patient errors.
The nonprofit news organizationProPublica has never been one to shy away from controversy, particularly when it comes to healthcare quality. In the past, it has published databases in which patients can see whether their doctor is taking money from pharmaceutical companies, and what...
Antibiotic resistance has reached a "tipping point," according to a Vital Signs report released in August by the CDC. Internal hospital controls are no longer sufficient to prevent the spread of antibiotic-resistant organisms. Now, healthcare providers across the country should be...
For years, hospitals have used root cause analysis (RCA) to identify gaps in their healthcare system that can lead to safety errors. The problem, according to some experts, is that the existing RCA process is inconsistent and often ineffective when it comes to the ultimate goal of prevention...
Hospitalized patients have a long list of potential safety concerns, ranging from medication errors to deadly infections. One thing they probably aren't thinking about is the food.
With one click of his mouse, Auron Priestly, MD, CEO and founder of Kolkin Corp. in Newport Beach, California, accesses care plan information for a patient named Richard Sanderson. He quickly types in new orders, and with another click, the record is updated for the rest of his...
Surgical bundles have become commonplace in the healthcare industry, particularly to help stave off dangerous infections. A recent study looking specifically at cardiac procedures and joint replacement procedures shows that a previously untested surgical site infection (SSI) bundle can offer...
Those advocating for more transparency in healthcare will be pleased with the Surgeon Scorecard, released by the investigative journalism organization, ProPublica. Many surgeons, however, are not.
