Editor's Note This German study finds that bacterial contamination of healthcare workers’ (HCWs’) smartphones can be a source of cross-contamination, and cleaning intensity increased during the COVID-19 pandemic. Of 295 HCWs (99 in 2012 and 196 in 2021) from 26 wards comprising 19 different specialties included in the analysis, bacterial…

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Editor's Note In a March 28 update, the American College of Surgeons (ACS) says it is following the humanitarian crisis unfolding in Ukraine through Operation Giving Back, and that no current role or mechanism exists for safe travel to help in person at this time. ACS notes that healthcare facilities…

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Editor's Note Overall healthcare employment in the US was up in March to a seasonally adjusted 16,192,400 workers, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on April 1. That’s up 8,300 since February. Hospital employment also was up by 5,100 jobs. The overall unemployment rate for March was 3.6%, for a…

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Editor's Note This study from the UK finds that two doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine were associated with high short-term protection, but this protection waned considerably after 6 months; whereas, infection-acquired immunity boosted with vaccination remained high more than 1 year after COVID-19 infection. Of 35,768 participants analyzed, 9,488 (27%)…

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Editor's Note This French study finds that contact with COVID-19 patients was not the highest risk of COVID-19 in healthcare workers (HCWs). Of 3,234 HCWs enrolled in the study, 120 (3.8%) contracted COVID-19. The highest risk factors were contact with relatives or other HCWs  with COVID-19. Multivariate analysis showed that…

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Editor's Note This cohort study by researchers at the VA Saint Louis Health Care System and Saint Louis University finds that after the first 30 days of infection, COVID-19 patients have increased risks and burdens of incident diabetes and antihyperglycaemic use. A total of 181,280 COVID-19 patients in the US…

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Editor's Note The US News and World Report on March 29 posted its annual list of best nursing schools for Master’s and Doctor of Nursing (DNP) degrees. Topping the lists for both Master’s and DNP degrees is Baltimore-based Johns Hopkins University. Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, is ranked second for…

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Editor's Note The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) announced on March 28 that it had honored a request by Pacific PPE Corp to rescind all of its N95 respirator mask approvals, effective immediately. Respirators with NIOSH approval numbers TC-84A-9278, TC-84A-9299, and TC-84A-9313 will no longer be manufactured,…

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Editor's Note In this meta-analysis, researchers from Germany and Australia find that music-making and listening interventions are associated with positive changes in health-related quality of life. The systematic review and meta-analysis included 779 participants from 26 studies. Music interventions (ie, music listening, music therapy, singing, and gospel music) were linked…

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Editor's Note The American Nurses Association and Tennessee Nurses Association, on March 25, released a statement saying that the conviction of a former Vanderbilt University Medical Center nurse because of a fatal medication error made in 2017 sets a dangerous precedent. In the statement, they said: “We are deeply distressed…

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