There has been a growing sense of urgency around CMS surveys among accreditation professionals in recent years. The anxiety once reserved for Joint Commission visits has drifted much more into anticipation of a visit from CMS surveyors instead. Industry experts have said that CMS itself has been...
Some healthcare-associated infection (HAI) rates have gone down in the past few years, according to the 2011 National and State Healthcare-Associated Infections Standardized Infection Ratio Report.
Conducting a timeout, including the use of a checklist, before beginning a surgery is a well-known requirement of The Joint Commission-it has been a standard of quality care for years now. Staff in operating rooms are used to systematically ticking off checklists, and just about...
Briefings on Accreditation & Quality - Volume 24, Issue 5
There are two sections that would affect transplant centers. The first relates to transplant center reports to CMS. The current CoP requires notification of certain changes related to the transplant center program, such as a decrease in the number of transplants or survival rates. Data is...
Briefings on Accreditation & Quality - Volume 24, Issue 5
An article by a nurse that appeared recently in The New York Times has brought about a surge of discussion, sometimes revealing, sometimes aggressive, about the relationships and professional interactions between caregivers in hospitals.
Briefings on Accreditation & Quality - Volume 24, Issue 5
We hear it time and time again in healthcare: It's all about communication. This is particularly important and complex in the area of patient rights. Misunderstandings abound on both sides of healthcare equation-patients may not know or understand their rights, while staff may not be sure how to...
Patient satisfaction and quality of care matter to most frontline staff and other hospital employees, and they certainly matter in terms of reimbursement. The Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems survey measures patient satisfaction in different ways...
A recent study from Truven Health Analytics found that 71% of ED visits made by patients with employer-sponsored insurance coverage are for non-urgent issues or are preventable with proper outpatient care. Source:...
At Baylor Health Care System, many nurses do more to develop professionally than simply attend continuing education meetings and classes, including one program that conducts practice-based projects and awards cash bonuses for completion.
Hospital leadership must ensure that the infection control program had adequate access to the resources needed to support the functions of infection control and prevention. Name these three sources.
