From work environments to medical errors, Ryerson University's Daphne Cockwell School of Nursing faculty offer up their expertise on the nursing profession.
Declining rates of hospitalization have discouraged primary care doctors from seeing their patients in the hospital and encouraged the growing use of “hospitalists,” a specialty focused on the care of hospitalized patients. Further developments in the field mean that frequently hospitalized patients also may need a specialist focused on their care.
Roughly one out of every 24 patients undergoing surgery acquires a surgical site infection. With 40 million operations performed in the U.S. each year, between 800,000 and 2 million individuals contract these infections annually. An innovative new pilot project being launched by Sherry Lansing, a regent of the University of California, and her husband, Academy Award–winning film director William Friedkin, provides hope for the future in helping hospitals address such infections.
Patients on peritoneal dialysis (PD) typically have a higher early survival rate than patients on hemodialysis (HD). New data suggest that this difference may be explained by a higher risk of early deaths among patients undergoing HD with central venous catheters, according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (JASN).
John Walker, M.D., C.P.E., Chief Medical Officer, Cornerstone Health Care, is presenting Cornerstone’s successful use of Humedica MinedShareTM Ambulatory as a basis for its new Patient Care Advocate program. Joining Dr. Walker in the presentation are John Cuddeback, M.D., Ph.D. Chief Medical Informatics Officer, Anceta and A.G. Breitenstein, J.D., M.P.H., Vice President & General Manager, Provider Markets, Humedica.
Repeated unnecessary 911 calls are a common drain on the manpower and finances of emergency medical services, but a pilot program that identified Baltimore City’s top 911 callers and coupled them with a case worker has succeeded in drastically cutting the number of such calls while helping callers get proper care.
Specialized Health Professionals who Understand the Benefits of Health Information Technology and How to Use It Meaningfully visit elected officials to help them grasp the critical value of supporting HIT and informatics in healthcare.
Patients who receive intensive care services are very different in the United States than in the United Kingdom, according to a new study that compared admission and mortality statistics from ICUs in each country. The study found that U.K. patients are much sicker upon ICU admission, whereas U.S. patients are more likely to require continuing care after discharge and are often sent to skilled care facilities instead of home.
The number of people treated in U.S. hospitals for illnesses and injuries from taking medicines jumped 52 percent between 2004 and 2008 – from 1.2 million to 1.9 million.
The discovery of two genes that encode copper- and sulfur-binding repressors in the hospital terror Staphylococcus aureus means two new potential avenues for controlling the increasingly drug-resistant bacterium, scientists say in the April 15, 2011 issue of the Journal of Biological Chemistry.
Loyola University Medical Center ranks among the top 6 percent of major teaching hospitals in patient safety, according to new rankings from Thomson Reuters.
Hospitals can reduce the risk of life-threatening bloodstream infections in children with peripherally inserted central venous catheters by assessing daily the patient’s progress and removing the device as early as possible, according to a new Johns Hopkins Children’s Center study published online March 31 in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases.
A study of newly installed, hands-free faucets at The Johns Hopkins Hospital, all equipped with the latest electronic-eye sensors to automatically detect hands and dispense preset amounts of water, shows they were more likely to be contaminated with one of the most common and hazardous bacteria in hospitals compared to old-style fixtures with separate handles for hot and cold water.
Patients admitted to a hospital with major trauma and treated with the steroid hydrocortisone were less likely to be diagnosed with hospital-acquired pneumonia than patients who received placebo, according to a study in the March 23/30 issue of JAMA.
Poor communications continue to undermine efforts to prevent avoidable medical errors. The "Silent Treatment" study by AACN, AORN and VitalSmarts focuses on known risks that are left undiscussed -- dangerous shortcuts, incompetence and disrespect.
The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is awarding researchers at the Cook County Health & Hospitals System and Rush University Medical Center a $2 million grant to continue a successful program aimed at preventing healthcare-associated infections, antibiotic resistance, and other adverse events associated with healthcare. The project, dubbed the Chicago Antimicrobial Resistance and Infection Prevention Epicenter (CARPE), is one of only five CDC Prevention Epicenters in the country.
A new study by The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, that will be published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine, suggests men who take the drug finasteride, commonly marketed under the trademark names Propecia and Proscar, may report an on-going reduction in sex drive, and in some cases, prolonged periods of erectile dysfunction even after they stop using the medications.
The University of Illinois Medical Center at Chicago has installed a new, fully automated system that ensures caregivers have cleaned their hands when they enter a patient's room.
Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) represent a growing concern for both patients and healthcare providers across the nation. Creating and maintaining a hygienic environment is everyone’s responsibility and teamwork is an important part of the process. National infection prevention expert Ruth M. Carrico PhD, RN, CIC is available to discuss the responsibilities of patients and healthcare facilities to help prevent the spread of HAIs.
Can probiotics prevent pneumonia in patients breathing with the help of ventilators? That’s just one question researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis hope to answer as part of innovative new studies to reduce infections in health-care settings.
As part of Patient Safety Awareness Week, the American College of Radiology (ACR) reminds patients that everyone should understand radiology benefits and risks before they or a loved one receives an X-ray, computed tomography (CT) scan or other medical imaging exam.
To increase the chances of a safe labor and delivery, and make way for a memorable birthing experience, the North Shore-LIJ Health System has launched a new prenatal quality initiative, led by Adiel Fleischer, MD, of obstetrics and gynecology at North Shore University Hospital and Long Island Jewish (LIJ) Medical Center, and Brian Wagner, MD, a maternal-fetal medicine specialist.
American Association of Critical-Care Nurses, Association of periOperative Registered Nurses and VitalSmarts will release findings from “The Silent Treatment: Why Safety Tools and Checklists Aren't Enough to Save Lives” March 22 in Philadelphia.
New research shows that medications which have raised safety concerns over heart attack and stroke risks may not have gotten approval from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) if the cardiovascular effects of fluid retention had been better understood.
A rinsing technique with betadine that costs just a little over one dollar per patient may significantly reduce the infection rate following total knee and hip joint replacement surgery according to a study by researchers at Rush University Medical Center.
Hospital staff in Michigan ICUs cut by more than 70 percent the rate of pneumonia in patients who are on ventilators by using a targeted quality improvement initiative.
Cases of ventilator-associated pneumonia — the most lethal and among the most common of all hospital-associated infections — dropped by more than 70 percent in Michigan hospitals where medical staff used a simple checklist designed by Johns Hopkins researchers. Such pneumonias kill an estimated 36,000 Americans each year.
The Society for Vascular Surgery® (SVS) is now listed as a Patient Safety Organization (PSO) by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), on behalf of the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
New findings suggest that risks may outweigh benefits.
A study led by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) finds that, outside of the intensive care unit (ICU), GI bleeding is rare, regardless of whether or not patients receive medication, suggesting that the risks of acid suppressive agents may outweigh the benefits.
Program is first statewide initiative in the nation to focus on measuring and improving safety and quality of care for trauma patients.
Medication side effects are common—but when should you speak up?
Older Americans who were treated in Michigan intensive care units (ICUs) saw larger decreases in their likelihood of dying while hospitalized than similar ICU patients in other Midwestern hospitals.
Warning that patients could be at risk, an interdisciplinary group of multinational investigators is calling on the U.S. Congress and federal regulators to tighten a law that permits use of brain devices to treat rare neuropsychiatric disorders without supporting clinical trials or stringent patient oversight.
Efforts to keep hospital patients safe and continually improve the overall results of health care can’t work unless medical centers figure out a way to get physicians more involved in the process.
A Johns Hopkins-led safety checklist program that virtually eliminated bloodstream infections in hospital intensive-care units throughout Michigan appears to have also reduced deaths by 10 percent, a new study suggests. Although prior research showed a major reduction in central-line related bloodstream infections at hospitals using the checklist, the new study is the first to show its use directly lowered mortality.
Retired NFL players use painkillers at four times the rate of the general population, according to new research conducted by investigators at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. The researchers say the brutal collisions and bone-jarring injuries associated with football often cause long-term pain, which contributes to continued use and abuse of pain-killing medications.
The frequency of analgesic drug errors in hospitals is nearly 3 per 1,000 prescriptions, based on a study performed in a 631-bed tertiary care facility and published in The Journal of Pain.
A study by Washington University researchers has raised safety concerns about an investigational approach to treating cancer. The strategy takes aim at a key signaling pathway, called Notch, involved in the formation of new blood vessels that feed tumor growth. When researchers targeted the Notch1 signaling pathway in mice, the animals developed vascular tumors, primarily in the liver, which led to massive hemorrhages that caused their death.
Radiation oncologists can enhance patient safety in their clinics by further developing a culture of safety in which all team members are alerted to the possibility of errors and can work together to maximize safety, according to an invited article in the inaugural issue of Practical Radiation Oncology (PRO), a new medical journal whose mission is to improve the quality of radiation oncology practice. PRO is an official journal of the American Society for Radiation Oncology (ASTRO).
The story of Carlina White has brought new light to the subject of infant abduction. To protect their infants, the Director of Women’s and Children’s Services at Sinai Hospital of Baltimore says all parents need to know and follow these tips.
Medical students should have basic knowledge of common medication errors before they begin seeing patients at the hospital, and researchers from the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center report that allowing them to play detective by watching, spotting and analyzing medical errors as they occur can go a long way toward helping prevent potentially fatal mistakes in their future practices.
Patient deaths from pneumonia and acute myocardial infarction increased significanly in hospitals where nurses reported long hours and less down time.
Severely injured patients who are routinely given IV fluids by paramedics before transport to the nearest trauma center are significantly more likely to die than similarly injured patients who don’t get the time-consuming IV treatment before hospitalization, new Johns Hopkins-led research suggests.
Hospitalized children in the United States are becoming infected with the bacteria Clostridium difficile (C difficile) more frequently and children who acquire the infection are more likely to die or require surgery.
Hospitalized children in the United States are more frequently becoming infected with the bacteria Clostridium difficile, according to a report posted online today that will appear in the May print issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, one of the JAMA/Archives journals.
Dr. Robert A. Cherry, 45, a an accomplished trauma surgeon and a leader in quality and patient safety, has been named Loyola University Health System's chief medical officer and vice president of clinical effectiveness.
In a rare feat for any hospital in the United States, Methodist Willowbrook Hospital in Houston has not recorded a hospital-acquired infection in the top three at-risk areas for 14 consecutive months.
New research into hospital bed technology could soon represent a giant leap forward in patient care. University of New Hampshire professor John LaCourse is negotiating with hospital bed manufacturers to adopt his programmed algorithm technology, which could become the basis for “smart” computerized hospital beds.
Using a widely heralded Johns Hopkins checklist and other patient-safety tools, intensive care units across the state of Michigan reduced the rate of potentially lethal bloodstream infections to near zero.
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