Anesthesiologists
Association of preop frailty assessment with 1-year postop mortality
Editor's Note This study from the University of Pittsburgh finds that preoperative frailty screening was associated with significantly reduced 1-year postoperative mortality. A total of 50,463 patients (22,722 before implementation of a frailty assessment initiative and 27,741 after implementation) with at least 1-year of postoperative follow-up were included in the…
The Joint Commission updates Patient Blood Management certification requirements
Editor's Note The Joint Commission, on February 22, announced that it had approved new and revised requirements for hospitals and critical access hospitals in the Patient Blood Management certification program. The program is a voluntary 2-year certification based on the Association for the Advancement of Blood and Biotherapies Standards for…
Prepare for DEA inspections, controlled substances oversight
The headlines are attention grabbing: hospitals forced to pay millions of dollars after employees were found to have stolen opioids and other controlled substances. After being discovered and investigated by the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), the agents uncovered a number of issues: poor record-keeping, inventory, tracking, and other failures that…
FDA: Class I recall of certain Philips Respironics ventilators
Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on February 16 identified the recall by Philips Respironics of certain reworked Trilogy 100, Trilogy 200, and Garbin Plus ventilators as Class I, the most serious. The recall was initiated because of the potential for silicone foam adhesive failure and residual polyester-based…
Anesthesia risk alerts significantly reduce adverse events in 5 patient scenarios
Editor's Note North American Partners in Anesthesia’s (NAPA) Anesthesia Risk Alerts (ARA) program provides anesthesia clinicians with novel mitigation strategies to better manage five high-risk scenarios in the perioperative setting. Implemented in April 2019, NAPA’s nationwide healthcare partners have achieved 95% compliance screening for the scenarios and have performed secondary…
FDA: Class I recall of Smiths Medical CADD Infusion System Administration Sets, Cassette Reservoirs
Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on February 2 identified the recall by Smiths Medical of certain CADDTM Infusion System Administration Sets and Cassette Reservoirs as Class I, the most serious. The recall was initiated because of tubing occlusion and false “no disposable attached” alarm issues, which may…
Effect of postop anesthesia personnel visits on mortality
Editor's Note This study from the Netherlands finds the addition of postoperative visits by anesthesia personnel (anesthesiologists or residents) to routine monitoring with modified early warning scores (MEWS) did not reduce 30-day mortality. A total of 5,190 (2,490 control, 2,700 intervention) medium- to high-risk elective surgical patients from nine academic…
More anesthesiology residency positions may help with staffing costs, workforce shortages
Editor's Note Adding more anesthesiology residency positions, even without federal funding, may help hospitals save staffing costs and address shortages of anesthesia personnel, finds a study presented January 27 at the American Society of Anesthesiologists’ ADVANCE 2023, in Orlando, Florida. Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center compared the…
Incorrect anesthesia start times results in significant revenue loss
Editor's Note Inaccurately recording anesthesia start times is common and results in significant lost billing time for anesthesia practices and medical centers, finds a study presented January 26 at the American Society of Anesthesiologists’ ADVANCE 2023, in Orlando, Florida. The researchers, from Northwestern University McGaw Medical Center in Chicago, analyzed…
FDA: Addition to Class I recall of LivaNova LifeSPARC System Controller
Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on January 27 posted an addition to the Class I recall by LivaNova (TandemLife) of its LifeSPARC System Controller. The addition to the recall provides information about a software update now available to address the previous software malfunction and recall. The System…
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