Editor's Note To support healthcare organizations in implementing proactive risk management strategies, The Joint Commission has issued Sentinel Event Alert, “Environmental disasters: Preparing to safely evacuate or shelter in place.” As detailed in a November 13 press release, this alert outlines steps for healthcare organizations to consider as they prepare…

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Editor's Note Cybersecurity threats in healthcare are increasingly driven by third-party vendors, affecting millions of patients and hospital systems globally, experts John Riggi and Richard Staynings emphasized at the HIMSS Healthcare Cybersecurity Forum. Healthcare Finance News reported on the experts’ testimony November 5. According to the article, cyberattacks have surged…

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Editor's Note The story of how the perioperative team at Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital responded to a recent cyber event revealed insights about resilience, communication, team-building, and preparedness in one of the concluding sessions of this week’s OR Manager Conference in Las Vegas. The session was presented…

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Editor's Note Iranian cyber actors employing techniques such as brute force, password spraying, and multifactor authentication (MFA) "push bombing" to compromise healthcare and other critical infrastructure sectors, the American Hospital Association (AHA) reported October 17. The report cites an October 16 joint advisory issued on October 16 by the FBI,…

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Editor's Note The Biden administration has invoked wartime powers to speed rebuilding of intravenous fluid (IV) manufacturing capacity, CBS News reported October 15, four days after the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) took steps to combat drug shortages. Both efforts are in response to devastation wrought by Hurricane Helene,…

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Editor's Note Applying lessons learned from Hurricane Ian in 2022 helped Tampa General Hospital (TGH) successfully withstand Hurricane Helene in late September, according to an October 3 HealthLeaders interview with TGH CEO John Couris. Detailing how strategic preparations ensured the safety of its patients, staff, and critical infrastructure, including its…

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Editor's Note In the wake of Hurricane Helene and the recent Gulf Coast port strikes, hospitals are raising alarms and pursuing their own strategies for mitigating supply chain disruption even as a second hurricane—Milton—bears down on Florida. As of October 7, dozens of Florida healthcare facilities had suspended services and/or…

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Editor's Note Six US companies will manufacture approximately 250 million medical gowns as part of a government effort to shore up supplies that were subject to shortages during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Associated Press (AP) reported October 3. Led by the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR), the initiative…

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Editor's Note Patient safety nonprofit ECRI is offering resources to help healthcare providers mitigate potential shortages of critical medical supplies following the devastation caused by Hurricane Helene along the US southeast coast and the ongoing strike by the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA). According to an October 1 announcement, the first…

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Editor's Note The shuttering of a critical Baxter International manufacturing plant in North Carolina due to Hurricane Helene could put significant stress on already strained healthcare supply chain, according to an October 1 report in Axios. According to the article, the facility is a critical production center for produces intravenous…

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