Study: Women more likely to die from postoperative complications after high-risk surgery
Editor's Note Female patients undergoing high-risk surgeries are significantly more likely to die from postoperative complications despite experiencing complications at similar rates, according to findings published October 16 in JAMA. Observed in a cohort of 863,305 Medicare beneficiaries, this disparity suggests that clinicians may be less effective at recognizing and…
WHO, Joint Commission mark World Patient Safety Day
Editor's Note In partnership with the World Health Organization (WHO), The Joint Commission and The Joint Commission and Joint Commission International (JCI) invite organizations, health professionals, patients, and their advocates to recognize World Patient Safety Day Tuesday, September 17. This year’s theme is “improving diagnosis for patient safety.” This theme…
Study: Women face higher mortality risk than men for postop atrial fibrillation after cardiac surgery
Editor's Note A recent study from two tertiary care centers highlighted significant sex differences in long-term outcomes after cardiac surgery, especially concerning postoperative atrial fibrillation (postopAF), MedPage August 21 reports. The study, published in JAMA Network, found that while women were less likely than men to develop postopAF following a…
Studies highlight success strategies for combatting handoff communication failure, care inequity
Editor's Note Recent research sheds new light on addressing two of the most pressing problems for surgical care: handoff communication failures and care bias and inequities leading to adverse—and preventable—events. These problems are the subjects of two separate success stories in the August issue of The Joint Commission Journal…
Study links patient mortality to low nurse staffing, overreliance on temporary hospital staff
Editor's Note A recent study conducted across 185 hospital wards in England highlights the significant impact of nurse staffing levels and staff composition on patient mortality. Published August 19 in JAMA, the study analyzed data from over 626,000 hospital admissions between 2015 and 2020. It found that low staffing levels…
Anesthesiologists sound alarm on wildfire smoke, surgical outcomes
Editor's Note The rising frequency of wildfires has anesthesiologists concerned about potential for adverse surgical outcomes to exposed patients, according to an article in the Online First edition of Anesthesiology, the peer-reviewed journal of the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA). As of an August 6 report from ASA, nearly 100…
Study: Spinal fusion failure more likely for diabetic patients
Editor's Note Lumbar spinal fusion procedures are significantly more likely to fail in individuals with diabetes, according researchers at The University of Toledo. According to a July 9 EurekAlert! report on the study, published in JBMR Plus, diabetic patients are already known to have a higher risk of infection from…
Study highlights asset depletion in hospitals acquired by private equity
Editor's Note Acquisition by private equity firms leaves healthcare facilities less equipped to care for patients, according to a recent study published in JAMA. NBC reported the news July 31. Conducted by researchers from the University of California at San Francisco, Harvard Medical School, and Hunter College, this nationwide study…
Physician survey illuminates negative impact of prior authorization
Editor's Note The American Medical Association (AMA) annual, nationwide prior authorization survey reveals that over 90% of physicians believe prior authorization negatively impacts patient clinical outcomes. “More telling,” AMA reported July 17, is the fact that 78% of physicians report that this process “sometimes or often” leads to patients abandoning…
State of the huddle: The barriers to and benefits of preop meetings
Complex problems do not always require complex solutions. Consider the surgical safety checklist. In 2020, more than a decade after the World Health Organization (WHO) started advocating that every hospital use the checklist, research from PSNET found that more than 90% of ORs in countries with a high human development…
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