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Issue 12, December 1, 2018

• A fire safety primer for your facility

  Every year, it bears repeating: Fires happen, and you can prevent that. Yet they keep...

Issue 11, November 1, 2018 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• OSHA says employers must protect temp workers from noise and respirator hazards

  OSHA has released twin bulletins requiring staffing agencies and host employers to share...

• OSHA: Get ready now for flu and potential pandemics

  As we approach winter, we’re now in the prime season for the spread of the flu, common colds...

• Review your water management plan as CMS intensifies focus on Legionella

  A good water management plan begins with your facilities management team and a solid risk...

• Fighting fire with fire

  Dan Scungio, MT(ASCP), SLS, laboratory safety officer for Sentara Healthcare, a multihospital...

Issue 10, October 1, 2018 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Put OSHA's training tools to work

  Your key to a perfect safety training program is as close as a website customized for the hazards...

• Worker wellness: Chemical safety and compliance

   Chemicals of all kinds are a daily part of life in any workplace, and healthcare clinics are...

• PSS-3: Three-question suicide screener for the ER

  In the chaos of the emergency department (ED), it’s easy to miss something you’re not...

• The safety interpretation

  Editor’s note: In this guest column, Dan Scungio, MT(ASCP), SLS, laboratory safety officer...

Issue 9, September 1, 2018 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• As USP looms, access your compliance of medication compounding standards now

   Examine your hospital’s medication compounding process and your compliance level with...

• An unexpected inspection could cost your facility if it isn't complying with RCRA

   Until about a decade ago, inspectors from the federal EPA and comparable state agencies did...

• Irked by "preventable" surgical fires, FDA issues alert with recommendations for healthcare professionals

   Expect The Joint Commission (TJC) and other accrediting organizations to more closely examine...

• TJC changing how surveyors evaluate healthcare leadership's attention to safety

  The Joint Commission (TJC) announced in the June issue of its Perspectives newsletter that it will...

• 18I Updates: September updates cover infection prevention and control

  The latest manual updates cover information on infection prevention and control in Tab 6 of the...

Issue 8, August 1, 2018 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Five key steps for creating, implementing an active shooter plan at your healthcare facility

  The threat of an active shooter roaming the hallways is one of the biggest worries among safety...

• Healthcare organizations are addressing second-victim syndrome, but more must be done

  More attention is being paid to second victims, and support options are slowly growing. Leaders...

• If you have an OR, then you must have an AED or standard defibrillator, too

  Does the OR in your ambulatory surgery center have a functioning AED or standard defibrillator? It...

• Tips to avoid getting tagged by TJC for unintended retained foreign objects

  Patients continue to be stitched closed with surgical sponges, gloves, needles, electrodes...

• Create awareness of proper ergonomics practices in your lab to avoid costly consequences

  In his monthly column, Dan Scungio, MT(ASCP), SLS, laboratory safety officer for Sentara...

Issue 7, July 1, 2018 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Bouffant hat vs. skull cap battle over? AORN expects to change recommendations for OR headwear

  Ever since AORN officially recommended that bouffant hats be worn in the OR by all surgical team...

• Expert advice on implementing an effective, legal mandatory flu vaccine policy

  With a new flu season right around the corner, now is the time for hospitals and other healthcare...

• NFPA unveils fast-tracked, new standard to help with response to active shooter incidents

  Spurred by coordination lapses in the aftermath of recent mass shootings across the country, the...

• Joint Commission now allows partially-used oxygen canisters in ’full’ rack

  Hospitals can now store partially used oxygen canisters in the same rack as full cylinders, but...

• If you want to know what your lab safety culture is like, stop in after hours and take a look

  In the laboratory setting, it is important to stress to staff that the environment they work in is...

Issue 6, June 1, 2018 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Hand hygiene monitoring technology increases compliance rates, but is it worth the cost?

  Currently, the majority of U.S. hospitals and outpatient facilities do not use hand hygiene...

• Joint Commission cited office-based surgery practices on a wide variety of standards in 2017

  The Joint Commission twice a year publishes in its Perspectives newsletter a series of top 10...

• Follow OSHA's Bloodborne Pathogens standard to ensure your lab staff stays healthy and safe

  In 1991, OSHA put forth a regulation that was designed to minimize healthcare workers&rsquo...

• Fall protection training required for staff, contractors exposed to fall of 4-plus feet

  Remember to provide fall-protection training to any worker at your facility who may be exposed to...

• ’Something as simple as a stained ceiling tile’ can draw The Joint Commission’s ire

  EC.02.06.01, element of performance (EP) 1, which requires hospitals to keep interior spaces safe...

• 18F Updates: June updates cover infection control, bloodborne pathogens

  The latest manual updates cover information on infection control in Tab 8 of the medical manual and...

Issue 5, May 1, 2018 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• IAHSS issues Threat Management Guideline to help healthcare facilities respond to violence

  Looking to reduce workplace violence in the healthcare industry, IAHSS released a new Threat...

• Floor corners, bathroom floors, and ceiling vents are hottest spots for dangerous C. diff spores

  Bathroom floors, nurse call buttons, and ceiling vents are among the locations where you will most...

• Joint Commission says sentinel events declined again in 2017, but same problems top annual list

  The Joint Commission recently released its final sentinel event statistics for 2017. The same...

• New EPA rule creates flexibility, potential savings for hazardous waste removal

  Because of the final implementation this year of the Hazardous Waste Generator Improvements Rule...

Issue 4, April 1, 2018 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Excessive noise in the OR poses short-term and long-term risk to surgical staff

  Step inside the OR and there’s a good chance you’ll get bombarded with noise -- door...

• New Jersey ’one-room’ surgical center law creates streamlined regulatory landscape

  One of Chris Christie's final acts as New Jersey's governor was signing off a law requiring smaller...

• HCPro book excerpt: Situational awareness is an important part of high reliability

  High-reliability industries and organizations are very familiar with the term situational...

• When it comes to lab safety, knowing laws an important first step for leadership, staff

  In his monthly column, Dan Scungio, laboratory safety officer for Sentara Healthcare, writes that...

Issue 3, March 1, 2018 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Fewer OSHA inspectors may put healthcare ’a little bit more under the radar’

  During his presidential campaign, Donald Trump repeatedly expressed a desire to trim the federal...

• Violence, opioids among top workplace fatality threats in healthcare

  Workplace fatalities rose for a third straight year in 2016, according to troubling data on fatal...

• Joint Commission focus on hand washing puts pressure on facilities

  Healthcare workers know they need to be on their best behavior when a surveyor from TJC rolls...

• Be mindful of FDA ban on triclosan, 23 other antiseptic chemicals

  The FDA in December issued a final rule on the safety and effectiveness of active ingredients in...

• The downside of staff workarounds, which can draw the ire of AOs

  Laboratorians are resourceful, and if you followed them through their workday, you would be amazed...

Issue 2, February 1, 2018 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Your action plan: What to do when OSHA comes knocking

  A surprise inspection is among the most feared things in a safety officer’s job. It need not...

• Dying malls and medical clinics: A symbiotic relationship that works

  One-stop shops may be the future of healthcare clinics. But what are their drawbacks and advantages?

• Laboratory safety in the pre-analytic phase

  In his monthly column, lab safety expert Dan Scungio writes that safe practices need to take place...

• CDC issues guidelines for healthcare facilities for preventing the next outbreak

  Infection control experts have been warning for some time now that the newest, and perhaps worst...

Issue 1, January 1, 2018 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Your action plan: What to do when violence strikes

  By now, the advice has been loud and clear to safety folks and administrators of medical clinics...

• What causes clinic fires?

  Newly issued advisories about fire hazards in healthcare facilities by safety advocacy groups are...

• ECRI lists top tech hazards for healthcare

  Improperly reprocessed gastrointestinal scopes, subpar disinfection procedures, cybersecurity...

• Taking 'control' of your lab safety situation

  The well-established “Hierarchy of Controls” is a system used to eliminate or reduce...

• MEU 2017 index: What you might have missed in 2017

  A helpful index recapping all of the stories published in Medical Environment Update in 2017.