Editor's Note Denver's Swedish Medical Center is asking some 2,900 surgical patients to get tested for HIV, hepatitis B, and hepatitis C after finding that an OR employee may have stolen narcotics, the February 3 Denver Post reports. Surgical technologist, 28-year-old Rocky Allen worked in the OR from August 17,…

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Editor's Note The use of chlorhexidine and alcohol for preoperative skin preparation resulted in a significantly lower risk of surgical site infections (SSIs)  after cesarean deliveries than iodine and alcohol in this study. Those who had the chlorhexidine prep had a 4% infection rate, which is nearly half that of…

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Editor's Note Depending on which hospital a patient goes to for a low-risk surgical procedure, he or she may be 2.4 times more or less likely to be sent for preoperative blood work, this study finds. Researchers found that overall, unnecessary preoperative lab tests (eg, complete blood count, blood clotting…

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Editor's Note About 7 million Americans are living with a total hip or knee replacement, including 620,000 who have had both, this study finds. In 2010, the prevalence of total hip and total knee replacement was 0.83% and 1.52%, respectively. Prevalence was higher in women and increased with age, reaching…

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Editor's Note Implementation of a surgical safety checklist was associated with a statistically significant 27% reduction in 90-day all cause postoperative mortality, while 30-day mortality remained unchanged in this study. The checklist was also associated with a reduction in length of stay but not 30-day readmission rates. This is the…

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Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on February 3 released a draft guidance document, “Enforcement policy on national health related item code and national drug code numbers assigned to devices.” The draft describes the FDA’s intent not to enforce before September 24, 2021, the prohibition against National Health…

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Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on February 2 extended the deadline for sending feedback on electronic health record (EHR) certification and quality reporting to February 16, 2016. The request for information is part of an effort by CMS to streamline and reduce the burden of…

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Editor's Note A Studer Group survey finds that nearly 90% of physicians have experienced burnout, and almost two-thirds say they are thinking about leaving the profession, the February 2 EHR Intelligence reports. Among the major causes of burnout cited were overcompensating for low staffing levels and the regulatory burdens of…

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Editor's Note The American Pain Society, American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, and the American Society of Anesthesiologists have issued a new guideline on the “Management of Postoperative Pain.” The guideline provides recommendations that address aspects of postoperative pain management, including: preoperative education perioperative pain management planning use…

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Editor's Note The Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore sustained top performance on all Joint Commission accountability measures from 2012 through 2014, and now more than 96% of patients receive recommended care consistent with national quality measures, this study finds. The sustainability process included: declaring and communicating goals creating an enabling…

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