Fill in the blank: Medication storage areas should be designed to address at least three things. One is to ensure the stability and integrity of the medications being stored. The second is to prevent diversion. The third is _________________.
One in three hospitals eligible for The Joint Commission's 'top performer' status has provided an evidence-based care practice 95% of the time for patients with certain conditions.
In our ongoing series (okay, perhaps that’s a rather ambitious descriptor, but there’s been more than one) relative to the upcoming implementation of the changes to OSHA’s Hazard Communication standard, you might find the information regarding the required pictograms helpful in getting your...
During an emergency, the hospital should determine the level of control that is needed for the particular event at hand. How could you control access while maintaining essential functions?
Briefings on Accreditation & Quality - Volume 24, Issue 11
Think back to your last visit to a hospital as a patient or family member. Every patient care area has recognizable, ubiquitous items, such as automated blood pressure pumps, compression pumps, and IV pumps. But how do you know if those items were cleaned and/or disinfected? Were they used with...
The National Patient Safety Foundation (NPSF) has awarded a $100,000 grant for a patient safety research project that will examine the mechanisms underlying patient falls in hospitals. The group of researchers and architects will then offer recommendations for improved facility...
Briefings on Accreditation & Quality - Volume 24, Issue 11
Think back to your last visit to a hospital as a patient or family member. Every patient care area has recognizable, ubiquitous items, such as automated blood pressure pumps, compression pumps, and IV pumps. But how do you know if those items were cleaned and/or disinfected? Were they used with...
Data collection and management is a growing field, but Richard Corder, MHA, FACHE, reminds those in healthcare that data is not the end point, but rather a means to an end.
Briefings on Accreditation & Quality - Volume 24, Issue 11
On August 27, CMS released significant changes impacting several areas of the Conditions of Participation (CoP). Interestingly, the information included in Transmittal 88 on August 27 rescinded and replaced a relatively recent update, Transmittal 86, on July 19.