The Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care (AAAHC) has been accrediting ambulatory healthcare facilities, including ambulatory surgery centers (ASCs), for more than 40 years, with some 6,100 accredited organizations. A top philosophy of AAAHC is “1095 Strong,” which emphasizes the importance of integrating quality practices throughout a facility’s 1,095 days…

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Editor's Note This Korean study finds that full COVID-19 vaccination was associated with a reduced risk of acute myocardial infarction (MI) and ischemic stroke after being infected with COVID-19. Of 592,719 patients with COVID-19 during the study period, 231,037 were included in the analysis, of whom 62,727 were never vaccinated…

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Editor's Note Eleven schools have recently started nursing programs and partnerships to address the persistent nursing shortages around the country, the July 19 Becker’s Hospital Review reports. Included in the list: Yale School of Nursing in Orange, Connecticut, began an online master’s degree program. Penn Nursing in Philadelphia began an…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission on July 20 announced a new “Healthcare Workforce Safety and Well-Being” website that provides resources to help healthcare workers (HCWs) advance the safety and resiliency of the organization. The website provides links to materials developed by The Joint Commission and healthcare-related organizations such as the…

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Editor's Note This study from the UK and France finds that sleep quality and circadian rhythms in night shift workers were poorer than in those who worked day shifts, even if they had been working the night shift for years. The analysis compares 63 night shift workers, working three or…

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Editor's Note The Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI), in June, published a response rebuking a joint statement issued by several GI societies opposing the "ANSI/AAMI ST91:2021, Flexible and semi-rigid endoscope processing in health care facilities." Many of the ST91 working group were dismayed that the GI society’s…

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Editor's Note This study from the University of Washington, Seattle, finds that a group coaching program designed to reduce stress and teach resilience was associated with improved mental health outcomes in healthcare workers (HCWs) during COVID-19. A total of 153 participants provided informed consent for the study with a mean…

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Editor's Note At least six hospitals across the country have recently cut services or announced plans “to scale back care,” Becker’s Hospital Review July 19 reports. Staffing shortage was the reason each facility cited for the move. The hospitals and cut services are: UH Bedford (Ohio) Medical Center and UH…

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Editor's Note This study led by researchers at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, UCHealth, Aurora, finds an association between healthcare workers (HCWs) reporting high childcare stress and burnout during COVID-19. The researchers surveyed 58,408 HCWs in 208 organizations from October 2021 to May 2022 on their concerns about…

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Editor's Note This Italian study describes the long-term features of the immune response to COVID-19 for different ages after mild infection. In this cohort of 252 family clusters with COVID-19, the immune response persisted until 12 months after infection in all age groups, with significantly higher antibody peaks for younger…

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