Editor's Note Despite widespread adoption of contact precautions for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (VRE), there is no strong clinical trial evidence to support the mandated use of these precautions, three noted infection prevention researchers say. Without the support of evidence, policy makers from 2000 to 2010 passed…
Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on June 23 posted the recall by Fagron Sterile Services (Wichita, Kansas) of three lots of succinylcholine chloride 20 mg/mL 5 mL syringes because of microbial growth detected during a simulation of the manufacturing process. This is a secondary recall of products…
Editor's Note Cardiac surgical team members recognize distinct critical time points during cardiac surgery, but a high degree of variability exists between members as to the importance of these times, which suggests an absence of a shared mental model, this study finds. Cardiac team members from three institutions developed a…
Editor's Note Researchers in the departments of anesthesia and biomedical engineering at Vanderbilt University have created a device that removes alarm sounds while preserving an ICU patient’s ability to hear human and environmental stimuli, notably speech. The in-ear device, which is worn by the patient, eliminates alarm sounds from the…
Editor's Note The Joint Commission on June 21 announced its new, free venous thromboembolism (VTE) compendium of resources. The compendium was developed to help clinicians, healthcare educators, and other healthcare professionals provide reliable and up-to-date patient education materials for VTE and anticoagulation therapy. Joint Commission Online Weekly Newsletter
Editor's Note In this ex vivo study, alcohol-based surgical skin preparations fueled OR fires in common clinical scenarios. No fires occurred with nonalcohol-based preparations. Alcohol-based preparations caused flash flames at 0 minutes in 22% and at 3 minutes in 10% of tests. Testing pooling of alcohol-based preparations, fires occurred in…
Editor's Note Hospitals with rectal cancer programs may now earn accreditation from the new National Accreditation Program for Rectal Cancer (NAPRC), the American College of Surgeons (ACS) announced on June 21. NAPRC is based on successful international models that have resulted in better outcomes and emphasize a multidisciplinary team approach…
Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on June 21 announced the recall by Vascular Solutions (Maple Grove, Minnesota) of its Venture Catheters. The recall was initiated because there is a risk of the catheter tip splitting or separating during use and entering the patient’s bloodstream. This can result…
Editor's Note In this single institution study, the most common reasons for unplanned return to the OR (uROR) were infection and hemorrhage. However, the researchers found that a large number of cases were incorrectly classified as uROR, when they were instead planned reoperations without adequate documentation. Using uROR as reported…
Editor's Note The Joint Commission announced on June 21 a redesign of its Evidence of Standards Compliance (ESC) form. The form was redesigned to help organizations focus on describing the critical aspects of corrective actions they have taken to resolve Requirements for Improvement, and to help ensure sustainability of those…
