Editor's Note Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra on March 15 amended the February 4, 2020, COVID-19 emergency use authorizations for: diagnostics for detection and/or diagnosis of COVID-19 personal respiratory protective equipment other medical devices including alternative products used as medical devices drug and biological products. These emergency…

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Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), on March 8, issued an update on reports of squamous cell carcinoma in the scar tissue (capsule) that forms around breast implants—both saline and silicone as well as textured and smooth. Previously, on September 8, 2022, the FDA informed the public of…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission, on March 15, announced that refreshed Accelerate PI Dashboard Reports are available for primary (PSCs) and comprehensive stroke centers (CSCs) to provide updated performance measurement data on quality measures selected for advanced certification programs. The reports contain data through the third quarter of 2022. Dashboards…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission and Kaiser Permanente on March 15 announced that they are now accepting applications for the 2023 Bernard J. Tyson National Award for Excellence in Pursuit of Healthcare Equity. The award, now in its 3rd year, recognizes a healthcare organization for an intervention that led to…

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Editor's Note ECRI, on March 13, released its annual Top 10 Patient Safety Concerns, which identifies potential sources of danger for patients and healthcare staff. ECRI also provides detailed steps that organizations can take to prevent adverse incidents. Many of the concerns on the list are exacerbated by ongoing staffing…

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Editor's Note This study led by researchers at Weill Cornell Medicine, New York Presbyterian, New York City, and the University of California, Berkeley, finds that family financial disruptions caused by COVID-19 containment policies worsened children’s mental health. This analysis included a nationwide cohort of 6,030 US children aged 10 to…

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Editor's Note Overall healthcare employment in the US was up in February to a seasonally adjusted 16,688,300 workers, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on March 10. That’s up 44,200 since January. Hospital employment also was up by 19,400 jobs. The overall unemployment rate for March was 3.6%, for a…

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Editor's Note Nurse.org’s new 2023 State of Nursing Report, released March 8, finds that although 60% of nurses love being a nurse, 62% are concerned about the future of nursing. Other findings of the report include: Nurses are dealing with slightly less burnout, mental health problems, lack of support, and…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission on March 8 announced that it has approved new and revised requirements for hospitals and critical access hospitals certified under the Patient Blood Management Certification program, effective July 1. The requirements have been updated to maintain alignment with the Association for the Advancement of Blood…

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Editor's Note The American College of Surgeons (ACS) on March 6 announced that a group of leading medical and public health professional organizations are forming the Healthcare Coalition for Firearm Injury Prevention. The group is using a comprehensive public health approach to advance firearm injury prevention through education of healthcare…

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