Editor's Note An update of the 2014 “Strategies to Prevent Catheter-Associated Urinary Tract Infections [CAUTIs] in Acute-Care Hospitals” was published August 25 by the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA). The update, which is a collaborative effort led by SHEA, the Infectious Diseases Society of America, the Association for…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission, on August 23, announced that updated Accelerate PI Dashboard Reports are available for hospitals, critical access hospitals, and nursing centers. The reports provide performance measurement data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services on a select subset of quality measures through the second quarter…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission announced, on August 22, that it had revised its requirements related to medication compounding for accredited hospitals and critical access hospitals, effective January 1, 2024. The revisions include Element of Performance (EP) 3 for National Patient Safety Goal (NPSG) NPSG.03.04.01: "Label all medications, medication containers,…

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Editor's Note Two New York (NY) Upstate Medical hospitals, University and Community General, reimposed their mask mandates on August 17 after an increase in COVID-19 cases was announced, and testing is also now required for all patients admitted to the hospitals, The Daily News reports. According to a memo sent…

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Ambulatory is the term the industry is “stuck with” because that is the name the founders came up with in 1970, says David Shapiro, MD, CASC, CPHRM, LHR, an anesthesiologist with extensive experience in ambulatory surgery management and a member of the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC) board.…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission, on August 16, announced a strategic affiliation with the National Quality Forum (NQF) in an effort to accelerate improvements across the continuum of patient care and change the focus from competing measures to advancing key outcomes. The NQF will maintain its independence in developing consensus-based…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission, on August 9, announced that it is revising a performance measure for the advanced Total Hip and Total Knee Replacement (THKR) Certification Program—THKR-5: Postoperative Functional/Health Status Assessment—to align with a similar Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) measure. The recently adopted CMS performance measure—Hospital-Level,…

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Editor's Note This expert guidance document, sponsored by the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA), updates the “Strategies to Prevent Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus [MRSA] Transmission and Infection in Acute Care Hospitals” that were published in 2014. Among the updates: Recommendations are now categorized as Essential Practices that should be…

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Editor's Note This study, led by nurse researchers at the College of Nursing, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, explores the experiences of infection preventionists (IPs) during the COVID-19 pandemic. Responses from 61 IPs surveyed were included in the analysis. Among the findings: The initial phases of COVID-19 was a time of clinical…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission, on July 20, announced that it will eliminate and consolidate 200 additional standards, following the first reduction announced last year. Among the changes: Critical Access Hospitals: Of 150 in-scope elements of performance (EPs), 31 were deleted or consolidated, for a 15% reduction Office-Based Surgery: Of…

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