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1. STUDY LINKS DEATH RATES, NURSE EDUCATION 2. HOPSITALS PREPARE FOR FALSE SARS ALARMS AS FLU SEASON NEARS 3. CHRONIC DISEASES LINKED TO FALLS IN ELDERLY WOMEN 4. THE JCAHO'S 2004 NATIONAL PATIENT SAFETY GOALS

Patient Safety Monitor Alert, October 3, 2003

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1. STUDY LINKS DEATH RATES, NURSE EDUCATION

Low nurse education levels and low nurse-staffing levels may result in thousands of preventable deaths each year at hospitals nationwide, researchers conclude in a new study from the University of Pennsylvania.

The study, published in the September 24 issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association (Vol. 290, No. 12), found a markedly lower mortality rate in surgical patients who received care at hospitals where nurses held a bachelor's degree or higher.

The researchers reviewed 168 Pennsylvania hospitals and found a three percent mortality rate among patients who underwent general, orthopedic, or vascular surgery at hospitals where less than 10 percent of nurses held at least a bachelor's degree. The mortality rate fell to 1.5 percent at hospitals where more than 70 percent of nurses held at least a bachelor's degree.

Click here to obtain a copy of the study.

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2. HOPSITALS PREPARE FOR FALSE SARS ALARMS AS FLU SEASON NEARS

Hospitals are bracing for the upcoming flu season, and the challenge of discerning severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) from among the millions of flu cases likely headed their way.

The new awareness and threat of SARS will create new challenges for physicians and nurses tending to patients who present with such like typical flu symptoms as aches, pains, fevers, and chills.

There is no fast, point-of-care test for the coronavirus that causes SARS. Test that are available don't confirm the presence of the virus until at least 10 days have passed. Meanwhile, the virus is left unchecked to spread.

Confusing SARS with dengue fever, a respiratory illness common in the region, is one factor that contributed to the initial spread of SARS in Singapore and its earliest deaths. The outbreak there eventually killed 33 and sickened more than 200.

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3. CHRONIC DISEASES LINKED TO FALLS IN ELDERLY WOMEN

Elderly women with such chronic diseases as depression and arthritis are more likely to fall than other elderly women, according to a new study published in the September 2003 issue of BMJ (Vol. 327, No. 27).

The risk of falling in women with any chronic disease was 32 percent, researchers at the University of Bristol found. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, circulatory disease, arthritis, and depression were each associated with an increased fall risk, even after adjusting for other factors.

They found little relation between the number of falls the women experienced and the kinds of medications they took. Only anti-depressants and sedatives were associated with an increased risk of falling, between two and five percent.

Click here to view the study.

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4. PAY-PER-VIEW: THE JCAHO'S 2004 NATIONAL PATIENT SAFETY GOALS

Learn what the JCAHO's new Patient Safety Goals are for 2004 and how to comply. This pay-per-view story is loaded with practical, road-tested tips to get you on your way.

Example: Apply the following "who, what, when, where, why, and how" tests to each patient safety goal:

>> Who or which staff are responsible for carrying out the specific actions in the recommendation?

>> What specific acts or steps in the process do you need to carry out to comply with the intent of the recommendation?

>> When (at what step in the process) will they conduct this action?

>> Where or to which departments do the goals apply?

>> Why do we need to follow the patient safety recommendation? The answer is critical during staff education about the importance of the goal. Staff need to understand why they are asked to perform a task before they will consistently carry out the practice.

>> How will staff members fulfill the goal and its recommendations?

Click here to read more. The cost is just $10. Briefings on Patient Safety subscribers received this article as part of their September 2003 issue of the newsletter.

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