As of March 2013, more than 85% of eligible hospitals are participating in the Medicare and Medicaid Electronic Health Records (EHR) Incentive Programs, and more than 75% have received incentive payments for meaningfully using EHR technology. EHRs are the future, surely and...
Briefings on Accreditation & Quality - Volume 24, Issue 10
Last month in BOJ, we began our discussion of a number of key memos CMS has released impacting hospitals this year. Let's continue our analysis by examining luer misconnections, new Interpretive Guidelines, and changes to reporting adverse events.
The hospital is a large, multifaceted organism with thousands of moving parts within dozens of units that are often separated by wings, streets, and buildings. The physical barriers, however, are nearly unmatched by the cultural ones-different techniques, opinions, and views of...
Briefings on Accreditation & Quality - Volume 24, Issue 10
The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) has issued 10 penalties to California hospitals after investigations that found that the facilities were noncompliant with licensing requirements that caused or was likely to cause serious injury or death to their patients. Total fines were $674,...
Briefings on Accreditation & Quality - Volume 24, Issue 10
We talk often about the cost of Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) violations in terms of regulatory fines and penalties, and we may also mention that similar privacy regulations with their own fines and penalties exist at the state level.
Briefings on Accreditation & Quality - Volume 24, Issue 10
Everyone in healthcare knows about the struggles of medication reconciliation and its impact on patient safety and care. The Joint Commission takes notice, building standards and safety goals around safe use of medication, and every facility must take the time to look at its policies and...
Briefings on Accreditation & Quality - Volume 24, Issue 10
A new player has entered the field for hospital accreditation: The Center for Improvement in Healthcare Quality (CIHQ) has received deeming authority from CMS for acute care hospitals. CIHQ joins The Joint Commission, DNV, Inc., and the Healthcare Facilities Accreditation Program (HFAP) in this...
A new collaborative is bringing the meaningful use of checklists to the ambulatory and outpatient setting. The goal is to establish "zero harm," and a key effort in this is to effectively implement safe surgery checklists that include both clinical and safety culture...
