Surgery
The superior efficacy of machine learning based AI tools
With all the factors involved in optimizing OR utilization, assigning OR slots is a complex proposition. When you consider that the average cost to run a fully equipped OR is now at approximately $1,000 per hour in staff and equipment costs, it is more important than ever for hospitals to…
Substance use disorder admissions down, overdose deaths up during COVID-19
Editor's Note This study led by the RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, California, finds a 23.5% decrease in substance use disorder treatment admissions across the US during COVID-19. In 2020, the number of substance use disorders admissions decreased from 65.9 to 50.4 per 10,000. The decrease was larger for men (87.5…
New standards for quality care in emergency general surgery
Editor's Note The American College of Surgeons (ACS) and American Association for the Surgery of Trauma (AAST) on September 21 announced the launch of a new surgical quality program to help hospitals establish and maintain the highest standards in emergency general surgery. The Emergency General Surgery Verification Program focuses on…
Anesthesiologist staffing ratio tied to mortality, morbidity
Editor's Note This study from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, finds that overlapping clinical responsibilities of a supervising anesthesiologist are associated with increased surgical patient mortality and morbidity. A total of 578,815 adult surgical patients from 23 US academic and private hospitals were included in the analysis. The patients…
FDA: Class I recall of Medtronic Xomed NIM Contact, NIM Standard Reinforced EMG Endotracheal Tubes
Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration on September 12 identified the recall by Medtronic Xomed of its NIM Contact Reinforced EMG Endotracheal Tube and NIM Standard Reinforced EMG Endotracheal Tube as Class I, the most serious. The recall was initiated after Medtronic Xomed received customer complaints about obstruction of…
Bundled payments: A win-win-win approach for ASCs
Healthcare costs in the US have increased exponentially in recent years. Surgical procedures are especially costly. Cost control without sacrificing high quality care is the ultimate goal for many surgical practices and payers. Alternative practices and payment models have been explored to meet this goal. Episode-based payments, more commonly known…
Surgical volume changes during COVID-19
Editor's Note This study from Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, finds a severe decline in surgical procedure volumes across specialties during the peak of COVID-19, and after the peak and vaccine release periods, the overall volume did not fully recover. Of 129,956 surgical procedures analyzed during four…
ISMP publishes new perioperative medication safety guidelines
Editor's Note The Institute for Safe Medication Practices (ISMP) on August 11 announced the publication of its first set of safe practice guidelines to support perioperative medication safety in hospitals, ambulatory surgery centers, and other procedural locations. The new guidelines: Address best practices related to labeling and storage of perioperative…
Timing of major surgery after COVID-19 affects postop mortality
Editor's Note This study led by researchers at State University of New York Downstate Health Sciences University, Brooklyn, finds that patients having major surgical procedures within 8 weeks of a COVID-19 infection have a substantially higher postoperative 90-day mortality, regardless of symptoms. Analyzing data on 938 COVID-19 positive patient cases…
FDA: Hospira recalls one lot of Propofol
Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA), on July 13, posted a nationwide recall by Hospira Inc (a Pfizer Company) of one lot (DX9067) of Propofol Injectable Emulsion, USP (containing Benzyl alcohol), 100 mL single patient use glass fliptop vial. The recall was initiated because of visible particulate observed…
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