Editor's Note Ambient clinical documentation is making big inroads among physicians, according to a report on the recent Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society (HIMSS) conference published by CNBC on March 16. This year’s conference attracted more than 30,000 health and technology professionals to Orlando, Florida March 3-6. Highlights of…

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Editor's Note New standards from The Environmental Protection Agency promise to cut nationwide emissions of ethylene oxide—employed to sterilize more than half of US medical devices—by more than 90 percent. According to a March 15 MedPage Today report, the aim is to reduce cancer risk among the 13 to 14…

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Editor's Note The recent cyberattack on Change Healthcare created a financial impact for the lion’s share of US hospitals surveyed recently by the American Hospital Association, with more than half reporting “significant or serious” impact and three of every four also reporting direct impacts on patient care. These data reflect…

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Editor's Note Becker’s ASC Review on February 13 published an in-depth overview of the ambulatory surgery center (ASC) sector's growth and activity in 2023. It highlights the ongoing trends, market dynamics, regulatory changes, and notable company performances within the industry. Here are some takeaways: Growth and consolidation: The ASC sector…

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Editor's Note The American College of Cardiology (ACC) has introduced the CV ASC Registry Suite, a pioneering data registry targeting cardiac procedures at ambulatory surgical centers (ASCs), Cardiovascular Business February 13 reports. This initiative marks a significant development that reflects the trend of cardiac care shifting from hospitals to ASCs.…

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Editor's Note Two separate incidents of data fabrication and manipulation involving Harvard University and its affiliates might be indicative of a much larger fraud problem in the scientific research world, Vox March 1 reports. The most recent of the two incidents happened at the Harvard-affiliated Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, which faced…

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Editor's Note Successful use of augmented reality in a cardiac ablation procedure holds additional promise for training as well as more advanced OR applications, according to a February 29 report from Stanford Medicine. During ablation, a treatment for heart arrythmias, surgeons typically refer to as many as eight screens depicting…

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Editor's Note Patient engagement technologies (PETs) reduced length of stay (LOS), complication rates, and readmission rates among patients in a study published February 16 in the American Journal of Surgery. The retrospective cohort study consisted of more than 400 patients undergoing elective colorectal surgery from 2018 to 2022. Approximately 9…

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Editor's Note Divisive cultural issues such as abortion, gender-related care, and disagreements over the COVID-19 pandemic will "amplify the health care sector's visibility as a potential target for attack" by domestic extremists, according to a March 4 ABC News report on a confidential memo issued by the Department of Homeland…

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Editor's Note BlackCat, the ransomware group responsible for the cyberattack on UnitedHealth Group’s Change Healthcare received a $22 million payment in bitcoins, according to a post the group made online. Reutors reported the news March 4. Change Healthcare provides payment and revenue cycle management tools and is owned by UnitedHealth, the…

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