Editor's Note The Joint Commission announced February 19 that the Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital in Fort Worth has been awarded the first Primary Heart Attack Center (PHAC) certification by the Joint Commission and American Heart Association. The certification standardizes and improves coordinated systems of care for identification, assessment, monitoring,…

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Editor's Note The Joint commission on January 29 announced a new R3 report detailing changes to the Advanced Certification for Total Hip and Total Knee Replacement program. Effective July 1, there will be 11 new and 11 revised elements of performance (EPs) that will be applicable to all accredited ambulatory…

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Editor's Note In this study, specialty certification was associated with greater professional identity in ICU nurses and higher perceptions of knowledge of and value in evidence-based practices, whereas education level was not. Of 268 respondents from six hospitals and 12 adult ICUs in an integrated health system, 71% had a…

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Editor's Note The World Health Organization (WHO) has designated 2020 as the International Year of the Nurse and the Midwife, in honor of the 200th birth anniversary of Florence Nightingale. WHO and its partners are leading a year-long effort to celebrate the work of nurses and midwives, highlight the challenging…

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Editor's Note Higher levels of nursing education and more certified nurses improved the number of patient falls in this study. Using data from the National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators from 2010 to 2016 from medical centers in Central and Southern Illinois, researchers found that with every 1-unit increase in…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission on May 29 announced performance measures for two newly developed advanced Disease-Specific Care Certification programs−Acute Heart Attack Ready and Primary Heart Attack Center. The measures will go into effect July 1, 2019, for critical access hospitals and hospitals (including freestanding emergency departments) pursuing these certifications.…

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The United States is amid a conversion to a value-based system of healthcare. Although this new delivery model has contributed to the closure of some hospitals and the realignment of others into larger health systems, the primacy of the OR as a source of revenue for hospitals has remained constant.…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission on November 7 announced a new requirement of participation in a national joint replacement registry for its advanced Total Hip and Total Knee Replacement (THKR) certification, effective July 1, 2019. The Disease Specific Care Performance Measurement (DSPM) standard DSPM.4, element of performance (EP) 2 will…

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Editor's Note Healthcare accreditation organization DNV GL Healthcare on November 7 launched the first sterile processing program certification in the US. The program recognizes excellence in an organization’s sterile processing department within the scope of infection prevention and control, surgical services, endoscopic services, and related departments. An important part of…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission on October 24 announced that beginning January 1, 2019, any hospital wanting to pursue the Advanced Certification in Heart Failure or Comprehensive Cardiac Center Certification will no longer have to be accredited by the Joint Commission. The Joint Commission says it is making this change…

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