Editor's Note The Institute for Safe Medication Practices (ISMP), on May 18, released a new perioperative medication safety self assessment to help hospitals, ASCs, and other surgery settings evaluate their medication practices and identify challenges and opportunities for improvement. The tool also offers providers a way to document compliance with…

Read More

Amendments have been added to the Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI) standard ANSI/AAMI ST79, Comprehensive Guide to Steam Sterilization and Sterility Assurance in Health Care Facilities. The standard, which is used in healthcare facilities to guide their sterilization processes, is considered a useful resource to promote best…

Read More

Editor's Note In this study, led by researchers at Florida State University, Tallahassee, reusable cover gowns were found to provide increased protection, compared to disposable cover gowns. During personal protective equipment (PPE) shortages, such as during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that washable cloth…

Read More

Editor's Note The Joint Commission announced April 21 that, effectively immediately, Life Safety Code surveyors will cite noncompliance in suites with aisles that have less than 36 inches of clearance from side to side to facilitate egress in hospitals and critical access hospitals. The finding will be scored at Life…

Read More

Editor's Note In this study from the University of Denver and the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, respondents to two surveys agreed with the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine’s prioritization framework for COVID-19 vaccination. Of 4,735 respondents (2,730 to a Gallup survey and 2,005 to a COVID Collaborative survey):…

Read More

Editor's Note The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on March 5 released a study showing mask mandates were responsible for a decrease in COVID-19 case growth rates by 0.5% after 20 days and by 1.8% after 100 days. Mask mandates also were associated with a 0.7% decrease in…

Read More

Information about COVID-19 transmission and treatment has evolved between the time this infectious disease first emerged and now. As evidence-based knowledge grows and protocols change, and as populations are vaccinated to develop herd immunity, there is increasing optimism about the ability to combat the virus. Meanwhile, it is important to…

Read More

Editor's Note Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Robert R. Redfield, MD, on January 12, signed an order to expand the requirement for a negative COVID-19 test to all airline passengers entering the US. The order, which will become effective January 26, requires that: Airline passengers get a…

Read More

Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on December 1 released its 2021 final rule for the Medicare physician fee schedule (PFS), which expands telehealth services and increases payments for primary care and chronic disease management. The rule also reduces payments for surgeons, emergency physicians, and other…

Read More

Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on October 6 released guidance on how it will implement an interim final rule that requires hospitals and critical access hospitals to report data on COVID-19 and flu patients. CMS says failure to report specified data may lead to termination…

Read More