Seven schools, hospitals starting new nursing programs
Editor's Note Seven schools and hospitals have added nursing programs and partnerships to help tackle the US nursing shortage, the August 10 Becker’s Hospital Review reports. LSU Health New Orleans’ School of Nursing will offer three accelerated courses, beginning in January 2023. University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, is constructing a…
First case of polio in US after nearly a decade
Editor's Note On Friday, August 12, the New York State Department of Health and the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene announced that polio (poliomyelitis) was detected in local wastewater, Becker’s Hospital Review August 15 reports. "For every one case of paralytic polio identified, hundreds more may…
Maternal morbidity associated with delivery during COVID-19
Editor's Note This retrospective cohort study led by researchers at Ascension Health, St Louis, finds that COVID-19 infection is a risk factor for adverse peripartum maternal outcomes. Researchers evaluated the association of COVID-19 with severe maternal morbidities in patients delivering during four pandemic periods characterized by predominant variants—March-December 2020 (wild…
CDC updates COVID-19 guidance
Editor's Note The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on August 11 updated its guidelines for COVID-19. The new recommendations focus on helping people better understand their risks, how to protect themselves and others, what actions to take if exposed, and what actions to take if they test positive…
Simple new test predicts immunity to COVID-19
Editor's Note Researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, have developed a simple new paper test that can measure the level of neutralizing antibodies in a blood sample. Using the same type of lateral flow technology that rapid antigen tests use, the new test is designed so that different…
FDA: Class I recall of BD Intraosseous Infusion System
Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on August 11 classified the recall by Becton Dickinson (BD) of its Intraosseous Infusion System, which includes Intraosseous Needle Set Kits, Intraosseous Manual Driver Kits, and Intraosseous Powered Drivers, as Class I, the most serious. The recall was initiated for three separate…
Immune response of mix-and-match boosters
Editor's Note This study led by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, finds that being boosted with either the Janssen (Johnson & Johnson) or Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine was associated with increased humoral and cellular immune responses. Boosting with the Janssen vaccine also was associated with durable antibody and T-cell…
The Joint Commission to replace PNC Certification with ACPC program
Editor's Note The Joint Commission on August 10 announced that it will collaborate with the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) to offer Advanced Certification in Perinatal Care (ACPC) to accredited and nonaccredited hospitals and critical access hospitals with perinatal care programs, beginning January 1, 2023. The Joint Commission…
Report: Many people with hepatitis C are not being treated
Editor's Note A new Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Vital Signs report finds that a large number of people diagnosed with hepatitis C are not receiving treatment, Heathcare Purchasing News July 10 reports. Although hepatitis C is curable with oral medication, if left untreated, it can cause liver…
HHS releases tool to identify environmental hazards
Editor's Note On Wednesday August 10, the Department of Health and Human Services released the Environmental Justice Index (EJI), a tool used to identify health risks from pollution and other environmental hazards, the American Hospital Association July 10 reports. The EJI is the first national, geographic-driven tool utilized to measure…