Healthcare employment up in February
Editor's Note Healthcare employment in the US rose by 90,700 from February to March, according to the latest report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, released on March 8. That is compared to an overall monthly gain of 275,000 in February. In February, healthcare employment trended up also in: ambulatory…
ECRI lists Top 10 Patient Safety Concerns for 2024
Editorโs Note ECRI and the Institute for Safe Medication Practices (ISMP) every year compiles and unveils a list of the top 10 patient safety concerns affecting the healthcare industry. The report highlights issues what healthcare leaders should focus on within their own organizations and opportunities to address preventable harm. The…
Augmented reality headset enables real-time data visualization during surgery
Editor's Note Successful use of augmented reality in a cardiac ablation procedure holds additional promise for training as well as more advanced OR applications, according to a February 29 report from Stanford Medicine. During ablation, a treatment for heart arrythmias, surgeons typically refer to as many as eight screens depicting…
Rise of unnecessary spinal fusion surgeries concerns surgeons
Editor's Note Spine surgeons are sounding the alarm about high numbers of unnecessary fusion surgeries, according to a March 5 report in Beckerโs Spine Review. Unnecessary surgeries refer to any surgical intervention that is not needed or in the patientโs best interest. A recent report from Forbes finds that 50%…
Flexible sticker device detects postoperative gastrointestinal leaks
Editor's Note A medical device developed by researchers at Northwestern University and Washington University School of Medicine could enable clinicians to monitor the health of a patientโs organs following surgery. The findings appeared in the journal Science on March 7.ย Patients who undergo gastrointestinal surgeriesโincluding pancreatic surgeryโcan develop anastomotic leaks…
[Free Webinar] Series: Mastering OR Renovations and New Builds
Mastering OR Renovations and New Builds โ Working with Your Team to Navigate Design Challenges and Achieve Superior Results Preparing for an OR renovation or new build project? You may be asking yourself - where should I begin? The OR Manager Construction-Renovation Webinar Series will serve as your blueprint to…
Obstructive sleep apnea associated with risk of postoperative delirium
Editor's Note Patients with a history of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) have a higher risk of delirium after high-complexity surgeries but not after those of moderate complexity, according to findings published in the March issue of Anesthesia and Analgesia.ย ย The study included 46,352 hospital patients older than 60 years who…
Patient engagement technologies improve surgical outcomes, perioperative experience
Editor's Note Patient engagement technologies (PETs) reduced length of stay (LOS), complication rates, and readmission rates among patients in a study published February 16 in the American Journal of Surgery. The retrospective cohort study consisted of more than 400 patients undergoing elective colorectal surgery from 2018 to 2022. Approximately 9…
Alabama immunity legislation shields IVF patients, providers
Editor's Note A new Alabama law provides civil and criminal immunity for providers and patients of in vitro fertilization (IVF) services, the Associated Press reported March 7. Last month, the Alabama Supreme Court effectively ruled that frozen embryos are people with a constitutional right to life, casting doubt on the…
Negative pressure wound therapy reduces SSI across surgical specialties
Editor's Note Compared with standard wound dressings, single-use negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) devices can reduce the incidence of surgical site infection (SSI) in at-risk patients with closed surgical incisions across a range of surgical specialties, according to a data review highlighted in the February issue of the American Journal…