Cognitive assessment helps predict survival in frail surgical patients
Editor's Note Adding cognitive assessment to frailty assessment predicted poor postoperative outcomes and survival in frail patients better than either measurement alone, this study finds. The study included 330 patients having major surgery who were assessed with a four-level composite frailty scoring system, which was created by combining the Fried…
Hospitals partnering with ASCs to perform outpatient total joints
Editor's Note With the growth of ambulatory surgeries and the shift to Medicare reimbursement for outpatient hip and knee replacements, hospitals are acquiring and forming joint ventures with ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs), the August 5 Modern Healthcare reports. This allows hospitals to keep part of the revenue and better aligns…
Obese cardiac surgery patients use more ICU resources
Editor's Note After cardiac surgery, obese patients required significantly more ICU resources and longer recovery times, resulting in more expensive, labor-intensive care, this study finds. Of 5,365 patients included in the analysis, 1,948 were classified as obese. Patients with greater obesity were: four times more likely to have longer time…
Healthcare needs to prepare for Ransomware 2.0
Editor's Note Cybersecurity experts are warning that Ransomware 2.0 is coming, and healthcare needs to be prepared, the August 8 Healthcare IT News reports. Ransomware 2.0 combines ransomware with a worm, which allows it to move laterally or across internal and external networks. Because the next wave of attacks will…
New national surgical safety program begins with colorectal surgery
Editor's Note Researchers have released a surgical technical evidence review for colorectal surgery (published online August 7 in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons) as the first step in the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality’s Safety Program for Improving Surgical Care and Recovery, a nationwide program to…
Medicare ‘meaningful use’ data to be submitted via QualityNet
Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) announced August 7 that hospitals and critical access hospitals participating in Medicare’s Electronic Health Record (EHR) Incentive Program will submit their “meaningful use” data via QualityNet rather than the EHR Incentive Program Registration and Attestation System beginning January 2, 2018,…
Mayo Clinic tops US News Honor Roll of Best Hospitals
Editor's Note The Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, was ranked the nation’s top hospital by US News & World Report in its 2017-2018 Honor Roll of Best Hospitals. The Honor Roll consists of 20 hospitals with the highest combined overall scores in 16 medical-surgical specialties. Cleveland Clinic was second, Johns Hopkins…
CMS push to value-based care leading to more burnout
Editor's Note The push by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to transform healthcare delivery at community health centers to value-based care is increasing staff dissatisfaction and burnout, this study finds. From 2013 to 2014, clinicians and staff at 296 centers reported statistically significant declines in multiple measures…
ACS releases new surgical quality, safety manual
Editor's Note The American College of Surgeons (ACS) on August 7 announced the release of a new manual, “Optimal Resources for Surgical Quality and Safety,” to help guide surgeons in leading quality improvement and patient safety efforts in their organizations. The collaborative publication from 135 contributing authors and two surgeon…
FDA: Class I recall of Datascope Corp/Maquet intra-aortic balloon pump
Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on August 4 classified the recall by Datascope Corp/Maquet (Mahwah, New Jersey) of its intra-aortic balloon pump as Class I, the most serious. The recall was issued because of the risk of a valve failure, which prevents the balloon from inflating and…
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- Low-income patients billed despite hospital tax breaks
- Report: Global nurse shortage widens inequities, fuels migration risks
- Study: Machine learning quadruples delirium detection in hospitalized older adults
- Ice machines spread Legionella in hospital oncology unit, prompting testing overhaul
- FDA fast-tracks generative AI rollout amid growing safety concerns
- Surveyed nurses report widespread burnout, urge system-wide reform
- Surgeons remove spinal tumor through eye socket in unprecedented procedure
- Commentary: Systemic trauma, not burnout, drives healthcare’s workforce crisis
- Federal grant cuts threaten hospital disaster readiness
- Study: Outpatient PCI safety comparable for ASCs, HOPDs