Editor's Note A new study shows video-language models (VLMs) can accurately evaluate nursing skills and generate meaningful feedback, potentially transforming how future nurses are trained and assessed, Cornell University October 6 reports. The study describes the first framework to apply VLMs to automated nursing competency evaluation. According to the article,…

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Editor's Note Surgical teams can dramatically reduce healthcare’s carbon footprint through waste reduction, energy efficiency, and smarter procurement, Cureus October 7 reports. The review’s authors describe surgery as both a major environmental challenge and a key opportunity for hospitals to align climate responsibility with clinical and financial goals. Healthcare contributes…

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Editor's Note Federal officials’ public rebuke of the Coalition for Health AI (CHAI) highlights mounting tensions over who should shape guardrails for artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare, Modern Healthcare October 10 reports. As hospitals accelerate AI adoption, industry leaders, regulators, and developers are clashing over how to ensure the technology’s…

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Editor's Note The US continues to outspend every other wealthy nation on healthcare, not because Americans use more services but because the prices of those services are far higher, Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker September 4 reports. The analysis compares US healthcare prices and utilization with 11 similarly wealthy countries and…

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Editor's Note This year, the OR Manager Conference promises playbooks attendees can put to work the day they return home. The event, being held in Anaheim on October 28–30, targets the system-level goals perioperative leaders are accountable for: capacity, cost, culture, and safety across multi-site enterprises. Attendees will get concrete…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission will launch a new initiative in January 2026 to highlight high-performing practices observed during accreditation surveys, according to an October 1 release from the organization. Called Survey Analysis For Evaluating STrengths (SAFEST), the program aims to provide more balanced feedback to accredited organizations while building…

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Editor's Note The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has updated its immunization schedules to emphasize individual-based decision-making for COVID-19 vaccination and to recommend that toddlers receive a standalone varicella (chickenpox) vaccine rather than the combined measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella (MMRV) shot, a CDC October 6 release reports.…

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Editor's Note Elective surgical procedures such as cholecystectomy and hernia repair can be performed safely in carefully selected patients with cirrhosis, but high-risk individuals still need alternatives, according to an updated American College of Gastroenterology guideline, Medscape October 3 reports. The guideline emphasizes individualized risk stratification that integrates liver disease…

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Editor's Note Fewer than one in ten older adults undergoing major elective surgery complete advance care planning (ACP), but a new multisite randomized trial aims to change that. According to a September 23 article published by BMJ Open, the study design for the I CAN DO Surgical ACP trial has…

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Editor's Note Training with surgical preference cards significantly lowers anxiety and strengthens clinical competence among OR nursing students, according to a randomized controlled trial published in BMC Medical Education on October 2. The study enrolled 60 OR nursing students in Iran between 2023 and 2024. Students were randomly assigned to…

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