Editor's Note A recent report on patient harm events by number and type from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) was explored in a December 2 article in HealthAffairs. The OIG reviewed medical records of 770 hospitalized Medicare patients who were discharged in…
Editor's Note A new collaborative initiative called the Healthcare Infection Prevention Advisory Group (HIPAG) has been created by the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) and the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA). It will address infection prevention priorities of national importance, according to a December…
Editor's Note Researchers have created surgical suture to help surgeons find just the right balance in tying a knot that is tight enough to heal a wound but not so tight that tissue is damaged, according to a November 26 news article in Nature. The surgical suture technology was described…
Editor's Note A new academic practice partnership playbook for nursing has been released through collaborative work between The American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) and the American Organization for Nursing Leadership (AONL), according to a December 2 news release from AACN. The AACN/AONL Academic Practice Partnership Playbook: From Shared…
Editor's Note Among patients at increased risk for postoperative pulmonary complications undergoing intraoperative ventilation, using driving pressure–guided high positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) and recruitment maneuvers did not reduce postoperative pulmonary complications compared to using standard low PEEP without recruitment maneuvers for patients undergoing open abdominal surgery under general anesthesia. This…
Editor's Note Effective onboarding practices for new surgeons can set the tone for long term success in many ways, including with supply chain decisions. Surgeons often bring new preferences for products. Taking a proactive approach to prepare a surgeon as a partner in organizational supply chain decisions can help align…
Editor's Note Gamification in perioperative education has become a popular way to engage learners in different ways, including as teams. Perioperative educators shared their tips for creating and implementing effective gamified perioperative education in the December issue of AORN Journal. One essential goal noted was to ensure educational goals are…
Editor's Note While the adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) represents important implications for health care delivery and patient care, AI application in healthcare care has lagged behind other industries such as information services. However, this changed significantly in 2025, according to findings from a new study published November 21 in…
Editor's Note A novel preoperative vaccine using a biodegradable scaffold system has proved effective in a mouse model to prevent infection associated with orthopedic devices. The investigators noted this vaccine approach could help prevent surgical site infection in patients undergoing joint replacement surgery, according to a December 1 news release…
Editor's Note To help teams develop and grow the confidence to demonstrate compliance with infection prevention practices during survey, focus on building practice-based consistency, an infection control consultant recently advised in an article published in the November/December issue of Healthcare Hygiene Magazine. The expert discussed infection control habits that healthcare…