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Accreditation Connection

This e-mail newsletter delivers the latest weekly accreditation news, analysis, and advice for any healthcare professional involved in CMS (formerly HCFA), JCAHO, or other survey preparation-in any setting.

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Accreditation Connection

Issue 52, December 24, 2008

• AZ health system rebounds to earn full accreditation

  Maricopa Integrated Health System of Phoenix, which fared poorly on its Joint Commission survey...

• CMS posts PQRI reporting information online

  As of December 19, the CMS began posting online the names of physicians and other healthcare...

• Ohio hospitals required to report infection info

  Ohio hospitals will be required in 2009 to report infection information to consumers, despite an...

• Building a better FPPE program

  When The Joint Commission implemented focused professional practice evaluations (FPPE) in January...

Issue 51, December 18, 2008

• No new NPSGs in 2010

  The Joint Commission has updated its “Facts about the National Patient Safety Goals&rdquo...

• OIG releases reports on adverse events

  The US Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General (OIG) has released a...

• HHS releases guidance on healthcare workers during flu pandemic

  The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) believes healthcare workers and other emergency...

• Building a better FPPE program

  When The Joint Commission implemented focused professional practice evaluations (FPPE) in January...

Issue 50, December 11, 2008

• Sentinel Event Alert targets technology-related medical errors

  The Joint Commission has released its latest Sentinel Event Alert, this time looking at prevention...

• Bedsores becoming a hospital epidemic

  More than a 500,000 patients admitted to U.S. hospitals in 2006 developed a bedsore during their...

• Inconsistency exists in adverse event reporting

  A new study shows that although 94% of U.S. hospitals have centralized systems for gathering...

• PSOs to take on analytic role at the state level, experts say

  Patient safety organizations (PSO) now have standards for certification, giving them the...

• Who is responsible for preanesthesia reevaluation?

  Q. 2009 standard PC.03.01.03, element of performance (EP) 8, requires that hospitals reevaluate...

Issue 49, November 26, 2008

• AMA asks for delay on disruptive behavior rule

  The American Medical Association (AMA) House of Delegates has asked for a one-year moratorium on a...

• CMS proposes no longer paying for wrong site, patient, or surgery cases

  The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) issued several proposed decision memos this...

• MRSA reporting advocacy groups step up presence

  A growing number of consumer advocates have taken arms against hospital secrecy regarding...

• Joint Commission report shows improvements in safety and quality

  American hospitals have demonstrated significant gains in patient safety and quality of care over...

• JAMA: Rapid response teams do not prevent cardiac arrests, deaths

  The introduction of rapid response teams across a major Midwestern hospital had no effect on the...

• CDC updates guidelines for disinfection and sterilization updated

  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued an update to guidelines for cleaning...

• Five new members appointed to Joint Commission Board of Commissioners

  The Joint Commission has announced the addition of five prominent leaders in healthcare to its...

• Study: Patient-controlled pain meds cause more harm than good

  Patients are four times more likely to suffer harm due to medication errors when using intravenous...

• Hospitals undergo process to change accrediting organizations

  CMS announced September 26 that it had granted deeming authority to Oslo, Norway–based Det...

• Immediate-threat-to-life situations in 2009

  With the introduction of Life Safety Code® (LSC) surveyors to The Joint Commission’s...

• Project seeks to reduce mortality rates by 17%

  A nationwide program seeks to lower patient mortality rates by 17% and improve reliability of care...

• Hospital makes staff preparedness a priority

  Early on September 15, The Joint Commission posted on its extranet news that surveyors would be...

Issue 48, November 13, 2008

• Joint Commission names Codman winners

  The Joint Commission has unveiled the winners of the 2008 Ernest Amory Codman Awards. The awards...

• Life-threatening infection affecting more patients than previously estimated

  The life-threatening bacterium Clostridium difficile is between 6.5 and 20 times more common than...

• Nearly half of adults will not get flu shot this year

  Just 52% of American adults plan to get the flu vaccine this year, citing poor excuses, according...

• Restraints Interpretive Guideline: Questions answered

  Q. If a patient is in restraints and it looks like he can do without them, and I take them off, can...

Issue 47, November 7, 2008

• FDA seizes contaminated heparin

  The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) seized 11 lots of contaminated heparin from a Cincinnati...

• FAQ released on NPSG.01.01.01, Universal Protocol

  The Joint Commission has released an FAQ on National Patient Safety Goal NPSG.01.01.01. The FAQ...

• Joint Commission to issue monograph on immunization of healthcare workers

  The Joint Commission will release a new monograph discussing methods, strategies and tools to...

• Lab decisions to no longer affect hospital decisions

  The Joint Commission announced this week that, under a new Joint Commission policy, laboratory...

• Spotlight on pain management

  The Joint Commission has brought a renewed focus to the area of pain management with its recently...

Issue 46, October 31, 2008

• Joint Commission responds to CMS Clarification

  The Joint Commission has issued an official response to an announcement to the Centers for Medicare...

• CMS to improve quality of care for hospital outpatient departments

  CMS announced intentions to build upon the connection between the quality of care provided to...

• Study: Staph infections becoming harder to fight

  At least 10% of infections involving staph bacteria were able to survive antibiotics commonly used...

• 2009 scoring changes: A look at clarifications, thresholds, and more

  The Joint Commission in August announced a new scoring system for its hospital accreditation...

Issue 45, October 24, 2008

• Joint Commission critical access hospital program on probation

  The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced in the October 24, 2008 Federal...

• Universal Protocol in 2009

  Q. Why is The Joint Commission now saying that, beginning in 2009, surgical timeouts should ideally...

• Study: Unique patient identifiers would benefit healthcare

  According to a study by the Rand Corporation, the creation of unique patient identifiers that would...

• Kaiser poll: Americans not using quality information

  According to a recent poll by the Kaiser Family Foundation, despite publicly available information...

Issue 44, October 16, 2008

• MRSA hits home

  Roughly 15% of Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) cases are not linked to...

• Lawyer association publishes checklist for pan-flu preparedness

  The American Health Lawyers Association has released a checklist legal issues tied to pandemic flu...

• GAO report details hospital community benefit

  The Government Accountability Office (GAO) issued a report earlier this month looking at standards...

• Patient Population and Sampling data deadline extended

  The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has extended the deadline for Initial...

• Universal Protocol, surgical timeouts, and EPs for 2009

  Q. Why is The Joint Commission now saying that, beginning in 2009, surgical timeouts should ideally...

Issue 43, October 10, 2008

• National organizations endorse efforts to cut infection rates

  Healthcare groups this month threw their weight behind recommendations to improve efforts on the...

• AHRQ announces PSO approval process

  The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality has announced guidance for organizations seeking to...

• Pediatricians slow to admit errors

  A recent study shows that only half of pediatricians in the U.S. would admit a medical error to the...

• Pediatricians slow to admit errors

  A recent study shows that only half of pediatricians in the U.S. would admit a medical error to the...

• Group to study impact of changes to Medicare payments

  The Health Research & Education Trust has received $180,000 in grant funding to study the...

• Know the medication management standards

  The Medication Management chapter is set up to reflect the continuum of the process, from...

Issue 42, October 3, 2008

• GAO report reviews hospital MRSA-reduction initiatives

  Due to the recent concerns about healthcare associated infections (HAI), the United States...

• Medicare no-pay for preventable conditions start date arrives

  October 1 has arrived: Beginning this month, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS...

• AHRQ awards $3 million contract to reduce central line catheter infections

  The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) awarded a contract of nearly $3 million to...

• Aon provides HAI benchmark analysis

  With Medicare ceasing to reimburse 10 specific hospital acquired conditions, or “never...

• 2009 scoring changes: A look at clarifications, thresholds, and more

  The Joint Commission in August announced a new scoring system for its hospital accreditation...

Issue 41, September 26, 2008

• CMS approves DNV to accredit hospitals

  The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced Friday the approval of DNV...

• CMS approves DNV to accredit hospitals

  The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced Friday the approval of DNV...

• Latest Sentinel Event Alert targets anticoagulants

  The Joint Commission has released its latest Sentinel Event Alert targeting anticoagulant use and...

• John M. Eisenberg Patient Safety and Quality Award winners announced

  The 2008 recipients of the John M. Eisenberg Patient Safety and Quality Awards have been released...

• CDC awards $24 million for flu preparedness projects

  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has awarded $24 million towards pandemic...

• Understand new rules for reporting restraint deaths

  CMS revised the new Interpretive Guidelines for hospitals in April. The changes were not...

Issue 40, September 19, 2008

• Joint Commission addresses pain management with new program

  The Joint Commission has launched a national campaign to assist patients to better address pain...

• PA bypass surgery deaths decrease

  The number of in-hospital deaths connected to heart-bypass surgery is at the lowest point in a...

• Hospitals face continued challenges with C. diff

  As hospitals battle drug resistant infections like Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus...

• Hospitals hesitant to help docs with EMR

  Hospitals are frequently slow to help physicians purchase electronic medical record (EMR) systems...

• Hospitals continue to struggle with heparin overdoses

  Despite increasing media coverage and awareness in the field, errors with heparin—sometimes...

Issue 39, September 12, 2008

• SII Phase II chapters available for review

  The Joint Commission has released several chapters for public review as part of its Standard...

• Hospitals use new teams to fight MRSA

  Teams of pharmacists, infectious disease specialists and microbiologists are spearheading the fight...

• AHRQ: Telehealth can improve safety and quality of care

  According to a report by the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality (AHRQ), telehealth can...

• Medical errors go unreported at NJ, PA hospitals

  Despite state laws requiring hospitals to report medical errors to state agencies, hospitals in...

• Gwinnett Medical Center creates a three-tiered approach to address medication security questions

  Gwinnett Medical Center in Lawrenceville, GA, is preparing to roll out a new, three-tiered approach...

Issue 38, September 8, 2008

• AHA shares opinion about CMS’ criteria for surgical errors

  The American Hospital Association asked The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to...

• Florida Supreme Court finds hospital law unconstitutional

  In a historic case, the Florida Supreme Court has deemed that hospitals must ensure medical staff...

• Hospital did not ask surgeon to leave after high level of infections

  Although Douglas Wallace, MD, a cardiac surgeon previously linked to a high level of patient...

• Travel ticket helps New Jersey facility improve handoffs

  Sometimes, it’s all about the journey, not the destination. And in hospitals, the journey a...

Issue 37, August 29, 2008

• Report suggests single rooms should be norm at all hospitals

  New hospitals should be built using single rooms for patients, according to a report in the Journal...

• 960 infants exposed to TB at California hospital

  A worker assigned to the postpartum unit of the maternity ward at Kaiser Permanente’s San...

• Investigation finds verbal check at heart of surgical error

  Operating room staff skipped a key verbal safety check prior to performing surgery on the wrong...

• Study examines role of hospital governing boards

  A new study by the Health Research and Educational Trust looks at hospital governing boards...

• Language adds twist to unannounced survey

  Hospitals can prepare for their Joint Commission (formerly JCAHO) surveys through several methods...

Issue 36, August 22, 2008

• Unattended patient dies in North Carolina facility

  A patient left in a chair at a North Carolina hospital for 22 hours died, the Associated Press...

• Hospital Compare releases additional mortality rate information

  The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has released death rates for the past two...

• AHRQ tool looks at disaster drills

  The Department of Health and Human Services Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) has...

• Brochure looks at stress in the healthcare workplace

  The Department of Health and Human Services National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health...

• Simplicity works: Punch clocks help with date/time compliance

  Being open to trial and error is a must at a hospital. Cecile Broussard, RN, MS, quality manager at...

Issue 35, August 18, 2008

• FL posts hospital inspection reports online

  Florida residents can now use the Internet to access inspection reports and the results of...

• Patient burned during heart surgery

  A patient having heart pacemaker surgery on June 24 at Abbott Northwestern Hospital in Minneapolis...

• Joint Commission seeks input on Speak Up campaign

  The Joint Commission is conducting a survey to gauge opinion about its Speak Up patient safety...

• More hospitals won't bill patients for medical errors

  Hospitals in 23 states now say they won't bill patients for medical mistakes, including operating...

• Effect of the 2009 NSPGs on medication reconciliation

  Editor’s note: This feature explores problematic Joint Commission standards with expert...

Issue 34, August 8, 2008

• CMS seeks to coordinate payment policies for 'never events'

  The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has issued a letter offering guidance for...

• Joint Commission, CDC collaborate to evaluate flu tests

  The Joint Commission and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are cooperating to...

• 2009 NPSGs: A focus on HAIs, infection control

  The Joint Commission announced its 2009 National Patient Safety Goals (NPSG) and elements of...

Issue 33, August 8, 2008

• CMS: California hospital puts patients in 'immediate jeopardy'

  Anaheim General Hospital has been cited by both CMS and The Joint Commission for inadequate...

• More patients seek out urgent-care clinics over EDs

  Patients in need of immediate care for illness or injuries are growing more and more likely to turn...

Issue 32, August 1, 2008

• CMS expands list of 'never events'

  The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has announced three additional “never...

• Are floaters effective?

  What is better for patients—a floater who is not familiar with the patient, or an overtired...

• Electronic record a challenging transition

  A Florida doctor speaking on behalf of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, warned...

• Guidance for pandemic flu vaccine

  The U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services and Homeland Security have put together a report...

• Working with your data

  All hospitals are reviewing core measures in some fashion. The question is, where to start?  

Issue 31, July 25, 2008

• Hospital investigated for employee criminal records

  The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors is investigating Martin Luther King Jr.-Harbor Medical...

• Consumer groups look at hospital errors

  In a bid to make more quality information available to consumers, two groups are urging New Jersey...

• Alleged heparin error costs entertainer a hand

  A Philadelphia comedian is suing a local hospital for an alleged medical error which ended in the...

• GAO: Many major gaps in state pandemic flu plans

  The Government Accountability Office (GAO) found “many major gaps” in the pandemic flu...

• Ensure appropriate use of soft restraints, drugs

  During a spring conference call with 4,950 healthcare professionals, CMS stated that mitts were not...

Issue 30, July 18, 2008

• New Medicare law changes Joint Commission deeming authority status

  Congress last week overrode a presidential veto of the Medicare Improvements for Patients and...

• Patient education: ED patients frequently unclear on instructions

  Seventy-eight percent of emergency department (ED) patients interviewed did not understand key...

• Kansas City insurer will not reimburse for preventable errors

  Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City has joined the growing ranks of insurers who will not...

• Survey: Patient satisfaction can be improved

  A survey of hospital chief quality officers found that 97% of survey takers agreed that quality...

• Heparin recall brings attention to policies

  Anticoagulation drugs have been in the spotlight already in the past year, primarily due to...

Issue 29, July 11, 2008

• New Sentinel Event Alert targets disruptive behavior

  The Joint Commission has released its latest Sentinel Event Alert, targeting disruptive behavior by...

• 17 babies receive heparin overdose in TX hospital

  Seventeen infants received overdoses of the blood thinner heparin at Christus Spohn Hospital South...

• New York Department of Health finds mixed results with state infection rates

  The New York State Department of Health released hospital infection data, with good and bad news...

• Michigan hospital association approves plan for non-payment of never events

  The Michigan Health & Hospital Association Board of Trustees has announced a new initiative in...

• Limiting restraints results in increased safety

  As hospitals limit the use of restraints and explore various techniques to keep their patients...

Issue 28, July 3, 2008

• Joint Commission unveils 2009 standards

  The Joint Commission has released its revised standards, rationales, and elements of performance...

• Woman dies unassisted in New York psychiatric emergency room

  Surveillance footage from the psychiatric emergency department at Kings County Hospital shows a...

• Duke hospitals sued over unwashed instruments

  Eighteen patients have filed suit against Duke hospitals following operations in which the patients...

• Duke hospitals sued over unwashed instruments

  Eighteen patients have filed suit against Duke hospitals following operations in which the patients...

• Florida aims to cut down on hospital readmissions

  The state of Florida has announced that, in an effort to prevent avoidable hospital readmissions...

• Updated protocols, smart pumps help with Goal #3E anticoagulant compliance

  A pending survey led one four-hospital system to take a hard look at its anticoagulation therapy...

Issue 26, June 27, 2008

• 2008 NPSG FAQs posted

  The Joint Commission has posted Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) addressing the 2009 National...

• Hospital staffing numbers affect MRSA rates

  According to a study by Australian researchers, overcrowded and understaffed hospitals are faced...

• WHO releases surgical checklist

  The World Health Organization (WHO) has released a surgical checklist intended to help create...

• Hospital corrects pharmaceutical, respiratory issues to save federal funding

  A North Carolina hospital, threatened with loss of CMS certification, was able to improve upon...

• Preparation pays off for hospital survey

  Being in constant compliance with regulatory standards is one goal for hospitals everywhere. But...

Issue 25, June 20, 2008

• 2009 NPSGs announced

  The Joint Commission announced its 2009 National Patient Safety Goals (NPSG) and Elements of...

• Joint Commission announces appointment of new vice president

  The Joint Commission has announced the appointment of Ann Scott Blouin, PhD, RN, to the role of...

• Massachusetts insurer to no longer pay for medical errors

  According to policies announced simultaneously last week, hospitals and physicians will no longer...

• FDA to alert physicians of safety issues

  A number of healthcare organizations, manufacturers, and insurers have banded together to promote a...

• PI.3.20: Proactively dealing with high-risk, low-volume procedures to increase safety

  PI.3.20 requires an ongoing and proactive process for seeking out the causes of—and...

Issue 24, June 13, 2008

• Medicare reform bill fails to find support; Grassley proposes similar language

  A bill including language to revoke the unique deeming authority status held by The Joint...

• Joint Commission releases white paper on 'Hospital of the Future'

  The Joint Commission has released a report thattargets guiding principles and actions that will...

• New measure set available for ORYX requirements

  The Joint Commission has announced that accredited hospitals will be allowed to use the...

• Cost of quality reporting too high, hospital group says

  The Premiere Healthcare Alliance, which represents some 2,000 hospitals nationwide, has said that...

• AHRQ reports wide range in healthcare efficiency measures

  A report, prepared for the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), has found that there...

• Use telepsychiatry to improve assessments

  Telepsychiatry, or assessing the mental health of patients via an electronic connection, sounds...

Issue 23, June 6, 2008

• Task force work on MS.1.20 continues

  The Joint Commission has announced that the Board of Commissioners has approved the continuation of...

• NY Medicaid program to stop reimbursements for 'never events'

  The New York State Medicaid program has announced it will, beginning in October, no longer...

• Study: Racial, ethnic disparities in patient safety events

  A report by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality’s Healthcare Cost and Utilization...

• HHS to provide funding for improving public health hazards

  The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has announced that nearly $1.1 billion has been...

• Getting the most out of your PPR process

  After three years of working through the PPR process for its Joint Commission accreditation...

Issue 22, May 30, 2008

• Nonprofit to provide hospital rating service

  Consumers Union, the nonprofit organization which publishes Consumer Reports, is set to join the...

• Infections stop cardiac surgeries at California Hospital

  Saint Agnes Medical Center of Fresno, CA, has put a halt on all open-heart surgeries as...

• Consumer safety guide for blood thinner available

  The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality has issued a consumer safety guide intended to help...

• Building awareness into the survey prep process

  Educating staff members in every department about the National Patient Safety Goals allows for...

• News from HCPro

  HCPro, publishers of this e-newsletter, wants to make you aware of a companion free e-newsletter...

Issue 21, May 22, 2008

• Maine clinic receives Joint Commission's first COPD certification

  The Joint Commission has certified its first organization with its Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary...

• Report: Blanket data use consents not beneficial

  The Health Privacy Project of the Center for Democracy and Technology issued a report this week...

• AMA highlights support for e-prescribing

  The American Medical Association met recently with stakeholders at the Brookings Institution in...

• National print campaign focuses on hospital quality

  The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS...

• Hospital creates policy to make critical test results stick

  Virtually every facility has its own way of managing the reporting of critical test results (CTR...

Issue 20, May 16, 2008

• Joint Commission looks at consumer healthcare decision-making

  The Joint Commission has undertaken a study to examine consumers’ use of available quality...

• NH provider allows physicians access to electronic medical records via mobile phones

  In an effort to expand its e-prescribing program, Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Hampshire...

• Research report addresses meeting diverse patient needs

  The Joint Commission’s latest update to the Hospitals, Language, and Culture project...

• Standards Improvement Initiative seeks comments on three programs

  The Joint Commission’s Standard Improvement Initiative is seeking feedback on standards and...

• Developing methods for addressing Life Safety Code® challenges for 2008

  With the introduction of a Life Safety Code® (LSC) specialist for surveys conducted in 2008...

Issue 19, May 12, 2008

• Highlights from Day 1 of AHAP Conference

  The 2nd Annual AHAP Conference kicked off last Thursday at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas with...

• Three surveys in four months

  When Susan Carvalho, RN, BSN, took over as director of quality and Joint Commission coordinator at...

Issue 18, May 2, 2008

• Changes to scoring of 2008 Emergency Management standards

  According to an April 17 decision by The Joint Commission's accreditation committee, new Emergency...

• Patients take HAI prevention into own hands

  Groups such as the Committee to Reduce Infection Deaths and the Safe Care Campaign are raising...

• Healthcare provider offers changes to reduce length of stay, costs

  ThedaCare announced this week a three-year, $90 million project that redesigns nursing units and...

• Better health IT leads to fewer hospital visits by office-based physicians

  A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey reports that fewer office-based physicians are...

• Accreditor’s application for CMS deeming authority moves forward

  DNV Healthcare’s bid to become the first new accreditation organization for hospitals in the...

Issue 17, April 25, 2008

• Joint Commission releases report on diverse patient populations

  The Joint Commission has released a research report asking healthcare organizations to examine the...

• Watchdog group: Plan to oversee imported medications not enough

  The Government Accountability Office (GAO) said this week that the Federal Food and Drug...

• Report: Electronic medical records can reproduce errors

  Using electronic medical records has caused some physicians to reproduce errors, an article in the...

• Consumer group targets physician discipline

  The number of serious disciplinary actions taken against physicians has dropped 17% since 2004...

• How to find methods to assess continual survey readiness in your facility

  Finding a way to evaluate hospitals in preparation for the next unannounced survey can be a...

Issue 16, April 18, 2008

• CMS releases proposed inpatient rule for 2009

  The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced this week its proposed rule for its...

• Joint Commission announces new chief of staff

  The Joint Commission announced this week the appointment of Anne Marie Benedicto to the role of...

• GOA issues report on HAIs

  The Government Accountability Office released this week a report focusing on healthcare-associated...

• Study: More healthcare not necessarily better

  A recent study shows that providing seniors less intense healthcare in the last two years of their...

• MD hospital avoids hand hygiene RFI, finds areas for improvement

  Multiple mock surveys prove to be one of the best ways to prepare staff members and hospital...

Issue 15, April 11, 2008

• Sentinel Event Alert focuses on pediatric medication errors

  The Joint Commission’s most recent Sentinel Event Alert takes aim at pediatric medication...

• Reports of heparin-related deaths triple since January 2007

  A U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) report states that deaths involved with heparin have...

• Pennsylvania hospital infection rates released

  According to a state report, more than 30,000 patients acquired infections while receiving...

• New campaign advocates patient involvement in care

  The Joint Commission has launched a national campaign promoting greater understanding and...

• Revamped nursing documentation increases patient care, improves Provision of Care

  When Gwinnett Medical Center in Lawrenceville, GA, decided to cut nursing paperwork by 50% to...

Issue 14, April 4, 2008

• Wellpoint to no longer pay for hospital mistakes

  Hospitals will now be responsible for paying the price when making medical errors, according to a...

• Study: Complications more common in office-based surgery

  A recent study shows that office surgery may be more likely to cause complications than...

• States adapt stroke care policies

  More states are considering requiring ambulance crews to bring suspected stroke patients to Joint...

• Actor founds organization to prevent medication errors

  A much-publicized medication error that nearly cost the lives of his young twins has led actor...

• Surveyors praise emergency management plan

  During the facility’s 2007 Joint Commission survey, Memorial Health University Medical...

Issue 13, March 28, 2008

• Accreditor's application for deeming authority reaches next stage

  DNV Healthcare's bid to become the first new accreditation organization for hospitals in the U.S...

• Most organizations use form to facilitate handoffs

  National Patient Safety Goal #2 requires hospitals to improve staff communication, but it does not...

• Agency reveals 'snapshots' of state performance

  The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality has released its 2008 "state snapshots" which...

• Medicines approved by FDA on deadline may cause safety risks

  Medications approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on deadline, rather than ahead of...

• Washington state hospital keeps survey ’uneventful’

  Often, simple steps help hospitals perform better on Joint Commission surveys. For Valley General...

Issue 12, March 20, 2008

• HCPro News: HCPro, Inc. launches new logo and tagline as part of its new corporate branding initiative

  HCPro, Inc. is launching a new corporate branding campaign designed to reflect the company's focus...

• PA hospital performance data available online

  The Pennsylvania Health Care Quality Alliance has created a Web site that compares performance data...

• Study recommends increased MRSA testing

  Researchers at Evanston, IL, Northwestern Healthcare have shown that techniques previously used for...

• Hospitals begin recycling single-use devices

  In an effort to cut down on cost and medical waste, some hospitals have begun reusing single-use...

• Simple advance directive identifier limits confusion

  Attached to every patient chart at Garrett County Memorial Hospital in Oakland, MD, you will find a...

Issue 11, March 13, 2008

• 2009 draft emergency management chapter posted for review

  The Joint Commission has posted its 2009 Emergency Management chapter for field review. Previously...

• Comment period open for Joint Commission's program for organized specialty clinical services

  The Joint Commission has posted its draft standards for a new Healthcare Services Certification...

• Study finds extensive MRSA testing may not help

  A New England Journal of the American Medical Association study now disputes the idea that...

• Accreditation manual update available

  The Joint Commission has made available proposed changes to the accreditation manual focusing on...

• Universal Protocol: Clarifying the physician’s role

  Q: According to the Universal Protocol for preventing wrong-site surgery, who is required to do the...

Issue 10, March 7, 2008

• Joint Commission releases paper on performance measurement data strategies

  The Joint Commission has released a new public policy white paper, Development of a National...

• Hospitals scramble to address high risk drug errors

  Hospitals across the country are implementing new policies and procedures for the prevention of...

• Site helps track e-prescriptions

  Five physician groups have joined together to create a Web site intended to help physicians connect...

• AHAP Staff Challenge: Listing patient medications

  True or False: If a list of a patient's home medications is obtained upon admission, there is no...

• Proposed 2009 NPSGs look at infection control, med rec

  The Joint Commission just closed the field review period for its proposed 2009 National Patient...

Issue 9, February 29, 2008

• Ask questions to avoid medication errors

  The best advice to patients for avoiding medication errors involves opening up the lines of...

• Facility looks to regain funding by addressing patient falls and other risks

  Broughton Hospital, a mental health facility based in Morganton, NC, looks to regain federal...

• Study: Busier hospitals have better heart transplant survival rates

  Researchers at John Hopkins University have found that hospitals that perform heart transplants...

• AHAP Staff Challenge: Look-alike/sound-alike drugs

  How often does an organization's list of look-alike/ sound-alike drugs need to be reviewed?

• Evaluate your organization’s readiness plan

  Treat the completion of your unannounced survey as a performance improvement outcome and assess the...

Issue 8, February 22, 2008

• MI hospitals allowed to use checklist for preventing catheter-related infections

  The Office for Human Research Protections (OHRP) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human...

• Stroke deaths increase on nights and weekends

  Two recent studies have found that stroke patients who arrive at the hospital at night or on...

• Risks increase for overnight/weekend cardiac patients

  Hospital patients who suffer cardiac arrest after 11 p.m. are 5% more likely to die as a result of...

• Arizona health group appeals preliminary denial of accreditation

  Maricopa Integrated Health System of Phoenix, AZ, is appealing a decision by The Joint Commission...

• Hospital improves medication reconciliation compliance by improving past practices

  Mandatory training programs, leadership involvement, and frequent audits helped Northwestern...

Issue 7, February 15, 2008

• Sentinel Event Alert highlights MRI-related injuries

  The Joint Commission issued this week its most recent Sentinel Event Alert, "Preventing accidents...

• Joint Commission accepting comments on Documentation of Care for SII

  The Joint Commission has posted proposed revisions to additional chapters for field review for its...

• Drug errors occurred in one in 10 patients at six Boston community hospitals

  According to a report in the Boston Globe, one in every 10 patients admitted to six Massachusetts...

• Comment period on PSO reporting open

  The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is accepting comment on a proposed rule that...

• How to connect medication management and black box labels

  The black box label-a recent focus area garnering more intense scrutiny among hospitals-is designed...

Issue 6, February 8, 2008

• Joint Commission accepting 2008 Eisenberg Award applications

  Applications are now being accepted for the 2008 John M. Eisenberg Awards, which recognize...

• New law for NY state office-based surgery practices

  With office-based surgical procedures nearly doubling in the last decade, New York state law...

• Clostridium difficile a challenge for both patients and hospitals

  According to a new study by Washington University School of Medicine and the Centers for Disease...

• Five Florida hospitals targeted by Medicare for quality improvement

  Improvements in surgical care are the focus for five Florida hospitals recently named in a recent...

• Definitions and rules for late entries

  Q: Our facility is trying to come to an agreement about how to define a late entry. To be specific...

Issue 5, February 1, 2008

• Drug mix-ups still increasing

  The number of drug name mix-ups has doubled since 2004, according to a report by U.S. Pharmacopeia.

• WA hospitals won't charge for medical errors

  Hospitals in Washington will no longer charge patients for medical care given in response to "never...

• HCAHPS preview data corrected and available for viewing

  CMS has posted corrected scores previously posted in error on QualityNet Exchange. Several weeks...

• Critical access hospitals allowed to participate in outpatient quality reporting

  A request by the American Hospital Association (AHA) to allow critical access hospitals to submit...

• All you ever wanted to know about S3 but were afraid to ask

  The Joint Commission (formerly JCAHO) released its Strategic Surveillance System (S3) in 2007. It...

Issue 4, January 25, 2008

• PA hospitals target preventable errors

  The Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare (DPW) has issued a new policy stating that hospitals...

• CMS addresses error in HCAHPS preview data

  CMS informed hospitals that Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems...

• White paper on infection control issues during hospital construction

  A new white paper discussing challenges faced by hospitals during construction while trying to meet...

• FDA to manufacturers: Study suicide risks associated with medications

  The Food and Drug Administration has announced it will require drug manufacturers to study...

• Medication storage and security

  Medication storage continues to be a hot button for Joint Commission surveys and a sticking point...

Issue 3, January 18, 2008

• Proposed NPSGs open for field review

  The Joint Commission this week announced proposed 2009 National Patient Safety Goals (NPSG...

• Joint Commission to improve office-based surgery safety in NY

  The New York State Department of Public Health (DOH) has designated The Joint Commission as an...

• FDA targets avoiding device fragments

  The Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Center for Devices and Radiology Health each year receives...

• Colorado healthcare providers struggle with infection-rate reporting deadline

  Colorado's legislature-established deadline for reporting healthcare-associated infections has left...

• System’s RFI numbers decrease with each survey

  From February to June 2007, three hospitals of the Main Line Health system in Pennsylvania...

Issue 2, January 11, 2008

• Task force to look into implementation of MS.1.20

  The Joint Commission has established a task force charged with exploring issues surrounding...

• OIG criticizes specialty hospitals ability to manage medical emergencies

  The Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General (OIG) has released a...

• Regulators: Hospital put pediatric patients at risk

  California state regulators said this week that Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, put...

• Decline in preventable deaths in U.S. lagging behind other nations

  According to a report in Health Affairs, deaths from preventable conditions decreased 16% in...

• NPSG #15A: Crafting a suicide risk assessment policy

  Creation of a policy to meet the requirements of National Patient Safety Goal (NPSG) #15A-suicide...

Issue 1, January 3, 2008

• RFI clarifications and prevention audioconference

  At the 2008 Executive Briefings, Joint Commission officials made it clear that their organization...

• New technologies hope to prevent items left behind during surgery

  A report in 2003 from the New England Journal of Medicine stated that foreign objects were left in...

• ED painkillers prescribed less frequently to minorities

  Emergency department (ED) doctors are less likely to provide more powerful narcotics to minorities...

• Change in hospital leadership follows threat of lost accreditation

  State officials announced changes in leadership at the Morganton, NC-based Broughton Hospital...

• CMS seeks to expand coverage for home testing of blood clotting tendencies

  The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has proposed to extend coverage for home...

• Involve staff in process to improve critical test results policies

  Knowing just what the "critical" part of critical test results is can be an ongoing battle between...