Sterile processing departments have and will continue to receive a lot of scrutiny during surveys. That is also where hospitals can see a lot of high-risk deficiencies or even a ruling of immediate threat to health or safety.
The Society of Interventional Radiology (SIR) predicts “significant” patient care “disruptions” will result from the EPA’s proposed regulations to slash ethylene oxide (EtO) emissions by 80%, according to ...
Safety audits are performed in laboratories across the world, but in some of these locations the environment remains very unsafe and performing audits hasn’t made any difference. Mistakes can be made when performing a laboratory audit, and those errors can lead to dangerous situations. While all...
So, jumping back a little in time, I want to loop back to the physical environment “problem list” identified in CMS’ most recent assessment of the survey effectiveness of the various accreditation organizations (AOs) just to, if you will, tie a bow around specific physical environment items...
“Folks ended up installing additional dispensers wherever they felt the need—some of which made sense, some of which, not so much—and had as much on hand as they could get ahold of. Lots of folks ended up obtaining hand sanitizer from local distillers who weren’t making hooch for internal...
Creating and sustaining a culture of safety has been a challenge for many healthcare organizations, but the objective value in having one can’t be overstated. Organizations like the Institute for Healthcare...
In years past, the term-ending grades for the various accreditation organizations have been transmitted to Congress in the late fall/early winter (the winter portion depends on where you are), but for Fiscal Year ’21 (Oct. 1, 2019 – Sept. 30, 2020), ...
You can have clutter in your bedroom, your car, or your home closet, but you can’t have it in your laboratory. Hazardous chemicals can’t be stored above eye level, boxes can’t block exits, combustibles should be kept away from heat sources. Everything in a lab has a proper place, and lab workers...
No single healthcare facility will beat antimicrobial resistance (AMR) alone—nor will one industry, field, or even country. To prevent a world where AMR infections become the norm requires cooperation and collaboration between healthcare organizations both foreign and domestic, and engagement in...
