Editor's Note In this study, patient factors, hospital case volume, and practice patterns were found to be associated with in-hospital mortality after elective abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) repair. Of 166, 443 AAA repairs performed at 1,207 hospitals, in-hospital mortality was 0.7% for endovascular AAA repair and 3.8% for open AAA…
Editor's Note Physicians Endoscopy, an ambulatory surgery center management company based in Jamison, Pennsylvania, is one of 12 outpatient-focused professional organizations and 10 ambulatory health care systems selected by the Joint Commission and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to participate in an infection prevention initiative. The initiative, called…
Editor's Note Fast-track total hip and knee arthroplasties with a median length of stay of 3 days and discharge to home are feasible in most patients 85 years of age or older, this study finds. Of 13,775 procedures included in the analysis: median age was 87 years and median length…
Editor's Note Medical chart review for surgical site infections (SSIs) that were identified through administrative data is an efficient supplemental SSI surveillance strategy following total hip and knee arthroplasty, this study finds. Of 162 patients with potential SSIs identified by diagnosis or procedure code, 46 (28%) were confirmed as an…
Editor's Note Mangers who inspire their staff members who work in groups to perform above and beyond the call of duty may harm their employees' health, finds this study. The results suggest that constant pressure from transformational leaders to make an extra effort at work may promote self-sacrifice in vulnerable…
Editor's Note ECRI Institute (Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania) on May 23 released its new recall management tool, Automatch for Equipment. The tool automatically identifies equipment models and supplies in a healthcare facility’s inventory that are impacted by an alert or recall, and notifies designated department staff. Automatch for Equipment is the…
Editor's Note In this study, researchers concluded that risk-adjusted postoperative 30-day mortality is useful as a surrogate for long-term outcomes in patients at Veterans Health Administration (VHA) hospitals. Though the VHA has used 30-day mortality as a measure of surgical quality for more than 20 years, the measure has been…
Editor's Note The American College of Surgeons National Surgical Quality Improvement Program (ACS NSQIP) Surgical Risk Calculator accurately estimates the risk of postoperative complications, and the calculator’s performance would improve with recalibration, this study finds. The statistical analysis for this study was based on 2.7 million surgical records collected between…
Editor's Note The number of colonoscopies reported through the GI Quality Improvement Consortium (GIQuIC) registry reached 3 million cases in April, PRNewswire reports. CIQuIC is a national registry that allows endoscopists and endoscopy facilities to benchmark themselves and encourages quality improvement. Participants contribute real-time, procedure-related data to the registry, which…
Editor's Note Arthroscopic surgery may not be the best option for patients over 60 years of age with hip arthritis, this study finds. Though most patients prefer minimally invasive hip arthroscopy rather than total hip replacement, researchers from the Hospital for Special Surgery, New York City, found that more than…
