Editor's Note This analysis by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on the incidence of COVID-19 and hospitalization of COVID-19 patients by vaccination status indicates that vaccination protects against severe COVID-19. Among 422,966 COVID-19 patients in Los Angeles County from November 7, 2021, to January 8, 2022, 141,928…

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Editor's Note This multicenter study by researchers at the Massachusetts General Hospital, and Harvard Medical School, Boston, finds that COVID-19 patients have a significantly high risk for postoperative complications, particularly elderly males. Of 1,581 patients analyzed, more than half were males over 50 years of age, and most procedures (1,261,…

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Editor's Note This study by researchers at the Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, finds that racial and ethnic minorities have been more hesitant or unwilling to be vaccinated for COVID-19, compared to Whites. Of study participants in the US (87,388) and UK (1,254,294): Vaccine hesitancy was greater…

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Editor's Note Tons of extra medical waste generated in response to COVID-19 has put tremendous strain on healthcare waste management systems, threatening human and environmental health, according to a February 1 World Health Organization (WHO) report. In this global analysis WHO says: A large share of 87,000 tons of personal…

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Editor's Note The American Hospital Association (AHA) released a new fact sheet describing various waivers issued by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) during the COVID-19 pandemic that AHA opines should be extended or made permanent, as reported by the January 31 Healthcare Purchasing News. The waivers relate…

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Editor's Note Reducing OR time availability at UPMC Presbyterian Hospital, Pittsburgh, by 15% helped address a 30% staffing shortage caused by COVID-19, according to a study presented January 29 at the American Society of Anesthesiologists’ ADVANCE 2022, the Anesthesiology Business Event in Dallas. A five-phase approach was used, which included:…

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Editor's Note Artificial intelligence (AI)-based scheduling significantly improved physician engagement and reduced burnout, in this study presented by Ochsner Health researchers, January 28, at the American Society of Anesthesiologists’ ADVANCE 2022, the Anesthesiology Business Event, in Dallas. The AI-based scheduling software, which created fair and flexible schedules that supported work-life…

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Editor's Note On January 25, 2022, the National Commission to Address Racism in Nursing released the results from a survey of more than 5,600 nurses, which were published by the American Nurses Association (ANA). According to the results, racism is a “substantial problem” within nursing. Health Leaders, in an article…

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Editor's Note This study, led by researchers at the Smidt Heart Institute at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, finds that from August 2020 through September 2021, 7% of lung transplantations in the US were performed in patients with COVID-19-related respiratory failure. In this analysis of 3,039 lung transplants, 214 were…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission announced on January 26 that it will add four new performance measures to four recently revised Health Care Staffing Services (HCSS) measures. The new measures will be used to report staff turnover rates and track reasons for staff turnover. The new performance measures apply to…

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