Editor's Note The prevalence of malignant hyperthermia (MH) in ambulatory surgery center (ASC) patients in New York state is approximately 1 per 500,000 and varies with surgical procedures, this study finds. Analyzing New York State Ambulatory Surgery Dataset data from 2002 to 2011, researchers found 31 of nearly 18 million…

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Editor's Note The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston on January 22 opened its new Veterans’ Bachelor of Science in Nursing program. The program will facilitate the transition of United States military veterans into professional nursing by providing an opportunity for up to 10 veterans per semester to…

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Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services on January 29 issued a proposed rule that will allow organizations approved as qualified entities to confidentially share or sell analyses of Medicare and private claims data to health care providers, employers, and others. The Qualified Entity Program, authorized by the…

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Editor's Note Hospitals that more often refer patients to inpatient facilities (eg, skilled nursing homes or rehabilitation centers) after surgery also tend to have shorter lengths of stay and higher readmission rates, this study finds. Researchers analyzed data for nearly 113,000 patients treated at 217 hospitals in 39 states. Higher…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission on January 27 announced that applications for its new Patient Blood Management Certification are now being accepted. The goal of the certification is to assist hospitals in implementing practices to help eliminate unnecessary transfusions and adverse outcomes. The certification is valid for 2 years.  …

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Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on January 27 classified the recall of St Jude Medical’s (St Paul, Minnesota) Optisure Dual Coil Defibrillation Leads as Class I, the most serious. The recall was initiated because of a manufacturing error that may have damaged the insulation layer of one…

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Editor's Note Two home visits by a physician assistant (PA) in the week after discharge significantly reduced the chance that a cardiac surgery patient would be readmitted, finds this study presented January 26 at the annual meeting of the Society of Thoracic Surgeons. Of 1,185 patients analyzed, those who received…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission on January 26 published Quick Safety #20, “Strategies to prevent URFOs.” This Quick Safety builds on Sentinel Event Alert, Issue 51, released October 2013, which addressed the prevention of unintended retained foreign objects (URFOs). URFOs were the most frequent sentinel event reported to the Joint…

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Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on January 27 announced that Baxter (Deerfield, Illinois) is recalling four lots of IV solutions because of the potential for leaking containers and particulate matter. The recall affects the following: 0.9% Sodium Chloride Injection, USP, 100 mL in Mini-Bag Plus Container (lot…

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Editor's Note A positive safety and teamwork culture and engaged hospital management were associated with lower surgical site infection (SSI) rates after colon surgery in this study. Researchers, led by Martin Makary, MD, from Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, measured 12 dimensions of safety culture and colon SSI rates in surgical…

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