Editor's Note Bipartisan legislation seeks to combat nursing shortages by financially incentivizing experienced nurses to train the next generation of healthcare professionals, Becker’s Clinical Leadership reported January 31. The Precept Nurses Act, introduced by Rep. Jen Kiggans, would offer a $2,000 tax credit to nurses who become preceptors in health…

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Editor's Note A study presented at the 2024 Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons (SAGES) annual meeting has revealed a significant correlation between financial conflicts of interest and favorable research outcomes in robotic bariatric surgery, General Surgery News January 18 reports. The article noted this concerning trend: authors who…

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Editor's Note Health systems across the US are making major investments in ambulatory care, responding to increasing patient demand for lower-cost, community-based healthcare, Modern Healthcare February 4 reports. From debt financing to philanthropic campaigns, hospitals are leveraging diverse funding strategies and shifting capital investments to build and expand outpatient facilities.…

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Editor's Note A large international clinical trial found that incisional negative pressure wound therapy (iNPWT) does not reduce surgical site infections (SSIs) following emergency laparotomy. The SUNRRISE trial, conducted across 34 hospitals in the UK and Australia and published January 27 in Jama Network, randomized 821 patients to receive either…

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Editor's Note The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) designated Class 1 Recalls—the most severe category indicating serious risk of injury or death—for multiple devices over the past few days, including pressure monitoring systems, emergency resuscitators, fluid delivery sets, extracorporeal blood circuits, endoscope accessories, infusion pumps, and glucose/Ketone meters. These…

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Editor's Note Implementing a multimodal analgesia-based enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) protocol significantly reduced both intraoperative opioid administration and postoperative opioid prescriptions in cardiac surgery patients, according to a January 5 report in Anesthesiology News. The findings were presented at the 2024 International Anesthesia Research Society meeting by Montefiore-Einstein Center…

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Editor's Note Patients who engage in prehabilitation—exercise, diet changes, and social support—before surgery significantly reduce their risk of complications, shorten hospital stays, and improve recovery, according to a new evidence review in The BMJ. As reported January 24 by HealthDay, the analysis of 186 clinical trials involving more than 15,500…

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Editor's Note Financial incentives can shape surgeons’ decision-making, but their effectiveness depends on the structure of the payment model. This is the central message of a January 26 article in Forbes reporting on two studies: one linking a sharp increase in hernia cases to a simple Medicare coding change, and…

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Editor’s Note Entities covered by the HIPAA security rule may soon need to adapt to more prescriptive requirements, new compliance mandates, and significantly higher costs, according to a January 24 report from TechTarget. As outlined in a December notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM), the proposal by the Department of Health…

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Editor's Note Using electronic medical record (EMR) data to track time-stamped information on patient movements and interaction with healthcare workers (HCWs) can help predict and block potential avenues for pathogen transmission, researchers claim. Healio reported the news January 24. Published in the journal Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology, the research…

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