Editor's Note Postoperative ischemic optic neuropathy (ION) in spinal fusion patients significantly decreased from 1998 to 2012 by almost 3-fold, this study finds. Age over 50, male gender, blood transfusion during procedure, and obesity significantly increased the risk of ION. The authors attribute the decline in risk to the increasing…
Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on July 1 released a final rule that allows certain CMS-approved organizations, including for-profit companies and government entities, to buy Medicare claims and other federal data at a price matching the governments’ cost of processing the data, Modern Healthcare reports.…
Editor's Note This study finds that physicians who use electronic health records (EHRs) have higher rates of burnout and are more likely to be dissatisfied with their jobs because of the amount of time spent completing computerized medical forms. The findings, based on a survey of 6,375 physicians, found that…
Editor's Note In this study, a preassembled toolkit that facilitated the aseptic collection of samples for culturing detected viable microbes on fully reprocessed endoscopes. Biopsy ports and suction/biopsy channels of 5 gastroscopes, 5 colonoscopes, and 5 bronchoscopes were aseptically sampled with the toolkit after the scopes were fully processed. Bacteria…
Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on June 30 published a correction to its recently updated fire safety requirements for hospitals. The correction says that hospital outpatient surgical departments must meet Life Safety Code provisions "applicable to Ambulatory Health Care Occupancies, regardless of the number of…
Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on June 29 categorized the recall of HeartWare Ventricular Assist Device (HVAD) batteries by HeartWare Inc (Framingham, Massachusetts) as Class I, the most serious. The batteries are being recalled because they may lose power prematurely because of faulty cells. If the HVAD…
Editor's Note In this study, researchers developed a question prompt list for older adults considering high-risk surgery. Three decision-making needs were addressed, including clarification of treatment options, setting postoperative expectations, and advance care planning. The list included 11 questions within 3 domains: Should I have surgery? What should I expect…
Editor's Note The Joint Commission on June 29 issued an urgent update to computed tomography (CT) technologist standards after receiving significant feedback from those concerned about the expectation for advanced-level CT certification and the potential impact on patient access to CT services if it was required by January 2018. The…
Editor's Note In this study, researchers examined whether income, educational level, marital status, and country of birth were independently associated with all cause cardiovascular, diabetes-related, and cancer mortality in patients with type 2 diabetes. Results showed that independent of risk factors and access to/use of healthcare, socioeconomic status was a…
Editor's Note A Joint Commission white paper issued June 27 dispels myths about the sharing of information with patients and their families. The aim of the paper, “Busting the myths about engaging patients and families in patient safety,” is to help organizations design more effective communication practices because open communication…
