OR Business Editor's Note This study from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, finds that the introduction and removal of Michigan’s executive order curtailing elective surgery during COVID-19 lagged behind the ramp-down and ramp-up of elective surgery volume. Hospitals had already achieved a 91.7% reduction in case volume before the executive order…
Editor's Note The Joint Commission on January 10 announced that it had elevated the Leadership (LD) Standard LD.04.03.08, which addresses healthcare disparities as a quality and safety priority, to a National Patient Safety Goal (NPSG), effective July 1, 2023. Current requirements for accreditation will not change, and the intent behind…
Editor's Note On January 10, ECRI released a new report calling on healthcare leaders to change their approach and embrace Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved weight loss drugs. ECRI says there is a large body of evidence showing that these drugs are beneficial as an adjunct to diet, exercise, and…
Editor's Note Hospitals and healthcare systems across the nation continue to face the staffing challenges which emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic, reports January 9 Becker’s Hospital Review. This issue is a top priority for healthcare leaders who want to maintain adequate staffing in order to provide the best patient care.…
Editor's Note Overall healthcare employment in the US was up in December to a seasonally adjusted 16,687,700 workers, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on January 6. That’s up 54,700 since November. Hospital employment also was up by 15,700 jobs. The overall unemployment rate for December was 3.5%, for a…
Editor's Note This study from the University of California, San Francisco, finds that patient access to elective surgical procedures during the COVID-19 pandemic recovery phase was limited by disparities based on age, language, marital status, insurance, socioeconomic status, and distance from care. Among the findings: The number of patients with…
Editor's Note Healthcare systems across the nation were still operating with negative margins in November of 2022, according to Kaufman Hall’s December National Hospital Flash Report, noted the American Hospital Association on January 4. The report looked at data from over 900 hospitals and noted that median operating margins for…
Editor's Note Hospital leaders are preparing for what is expected to be a turbulent 2023, according to results of a December 13 survey from the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions, reports December 19 Healthcare Purchasing News. The majority of health system leaders said that staffing challenges (85%) and inflation (76%)…
Takeaways Many OR managers said they were overdue for a survey by The Joint Commission because of the pandemic. The Joint Commission is said to be 3,000 surveys behind. More checklists are being used by surveyors, which are available in The Joint Commission’s Perspectives and EC News newsletters. New in…
Takeaways Natural language processing (NLP) may be helpful for predicting surgical outcomes and can facilitate more robust research. NLP comes with challenges that include potential for bias, costs, technology and terminology barriers, and the need to adapt to new ways of thinking. Before purchasing products that use NLP, OR leaders…
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