Association of US News top ranking for gastroenterology, GI surgical procedures with outcomes
Editor's Note Though the annual volume of gastroenterology and gastrointestinal (GI) advanced laparoscopic abdominal surgical procedures is three-fold higher for US News & World Report’s top-ranked hospitals, the volume does not appear to be associated with improved patient outcomes, this study finds. In this analysis of 51,869 abdominal procedures, the…
CMS proposes giving Medicare patients better access to cutting-edge devices
Editor's Note In its proposed rule, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) would give Medicare patients better access to innovative devices beginning next year, the July 30 MassDevice reports. CMS also says it might pay more for “certain transformative new devices” for inpatients, using a new technology add-on…
Sleep deprivation in acute care surgeons
Editor's Note Acute and chronic sleep deprivation patterns are common in acute care surgeons and worsen on post-call day 2, finds this study. In this analysis of 1,421 nights for 17 acute care surgeons, the average amount of sleep was 6.54 hours, with 64.8% of sleep patterns categorized as acute…
Joint Commission issues new Sentinel Event Alert on managing risks of direct oral anticoagulants
Editor's Note In response to an increase in adverse events related to direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs), the Joint Commission, on July 31, issued a new Sentinel Event Alert on managing DOAC risks. The alert: provides guidance for safe use and management of DOACs stresses understanding the risks, benefits, side effects,…
Preop opioid score not linked to adverse outcomes after spine surgery
Editor's Note NarxCare, an opioid-use score based on state prescription databases, is not associated with adverse outcomes or patient satisfaction after elective spine surgery, this study finds. Multivariate logistic regression analysis of 346 elective spine surgery patients did not find statistically significant odds of experiencing adverse events, readmissions, reoperations, and…
CMS maintains site-neutral cuts in 2020 proposed rule
Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on July 29 issued the 2020 proposed payment rule for ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs) and hospital outpatient departments (HOPDs), which would increase Medicare hospital outpatient prospective payment system rates by 2.7%. CMS is also proposing to add eight codes to…
Coffee lets colorectal surgery patients recover, go home faster
Editor's Note Postoperative coffee intake after elective laparoscopic colorectal resection leads to a faster recovery of bowel function and decreases hospital length of stay, this study from Switzerland finds. A total of 115 patients were randomly assigned to the intervention group (56) receiving coffee or the control group (59) receiving…
US News publishes 2019-2020 top hospitals list
Editor's Note The US News & World Report on July 30 released its 2019-2020 Best Hospitals Honor Roll. The top five are: Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore Cleveland Clinic New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia and Cornell, New York City. In the specialty rankings: University of…
Hospitals with more BSNs linked to better cardiac arrest outcomes
Editor's Note Hospitals with more nurses who have bachelor of science in nursing (BSN) degrees have better outcomes for patients after cardiac arrest, this study finds. For the study, researchers from the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, analyzed data from the American Heart Association’s Get with the Guidelines-Resuscitation registry, RN4CAST-US hospital…
AI helps Aetna resolve claims overnight
Editor's Note Health insurer Aetna has created an artificial intelligence (AI) software to settle insurance claims−a development that could lead to automation of other processes and free up staff to focus on higher-level tasks, the July 25 CIO reports. Aetna estimates the software, which is able to resolve claims overnight…
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- Augmented reality gains FDA nod, 10k-case milestone in orthopedics, strides in outpatient surgery
- Smart patient selection anchors DISC’s high-acuity spine ASC model
- Postop opioid prescriptions following outpatient surgery see steep, sustained fall
- Study: Bariatric surgery offers cost, survival benefits for cirrhosis patients
- AI monitoring, remote surgery advance