Many of those who work in hospitals know there is always potential for staff to make mistakes, and that those mistakes might cause patient harm. Hospitals are constantly working toward better patient care, putting systems in place to ensure that clinicians double- and triple-check their work,...
Briefings on Accreditation & Quality - Volume 21, Issue 12
When addressing anesthesia and sedation guidelines, the best advice is not to follow the letter of the law, but to look more accurately at the intent of the requirements, Bud Pate, REHS, vice president of content and development of The Greeley Company, a division of HCPro, Inc., in...
Briefings on Accreditation & Quality - Volume 21, Issue 12
If you stay around long enough in this field, the issues just cycle back. This year in the annual Joint Commission Executive Briefings, the issue of standing orders once again was raised. MM.04.04.01, EP 1 defines standing orders as pre-written medication orders and specific instructions from...
How quickly can you call up data on your nurses’ training and skill sets?
Midland (TX) Memorial Hospital recently changed its process for tracking online training and demonstrated proficiencies among its nurses. The change has resulted in a real-time information tracking program that has...
Editor’s note: The following column explores patient safety from the perspective of a newcomer to the patient safety field. Columnist Catherine Hinz, MHA, currently works at PatientSafe Solutions, Inc. Previously, she served as the patient lead at HealthEast Care System...
Starting in 2011, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) plan to add new standards for patient safety measures to its Hospital Compare website in order to enhance the effectiveness of Medicare’s fee-for-service program and monitor healthcare-related diseases and hospital-acquired...
