Editor's Note The Joint Commission, on March 24, released its sentinel event statistics for 2020, which totaled 794. The top five most frequently reported events were: Falls: 170 Unintended retention of a foreign object: 106 Suicide: 81 Delay in treatment: 76 Wrong-site surgery: 68. The Joint Commission’s Office of Quality…

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During the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare workers nationwide have experienced patient deaths on a scale like never before. Whether from COVID-19 or other complications, surgical services staff sometimes lose patients despite their best efforts, and these failures to rescue can leave lasting psychological or emotional scars. Many healthcare facilities have ramped…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission on March 10 announced that it will be returning to unannounced onsite surveys. Beginning March 15, organizations will no longer receive a phone call or email when it has been determined the area is at low enough risk for an accreditation survey team to visit.…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission on March 3 announced that it is extending the reduced volume eligibility requirements for its advanced Thrombectomy-Capable Stroke Center (TSC) and Comprehensive Stroke Center (CSC) certification programs through May 31 because the number of patients seeking care for strokes continues to vary because of COVID-19.…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission on February 24 announced that it will be offering an Advanced Certification for Spine Surgery (ACSS) in collaboration with the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons (AAOS). The new program will be available in July to hospitals, critical access hospitals, and ambulatory surgery centers that perform…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission, on February 17, announced that it had updated its information on offsite (ie, virtual) surveys and reviews. In response to COVID-19, the Joint Commission stopped most onsite surveys and reviews from March 16 to May 31, 2020, and they developed processes for offsite events. As…

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The Joint Commission stopped doing most onsite surveys and reviews from March 16 to May 31, 2020, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. During that time, they developed processes for conducting offsite or virtual events, and as of mid-December, more than 1,200 offsite surveys and reviews had been conducted across…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission, on February 8, issued a new Quick Safety addressing safe, equitable care during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Quick Safety focuses on actions organizations can take to: address racial and ethnic disparities remove barriers to providing safe, equitable healthcare. The pandemic has put a spotlight on…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission on February 2 issued the first in a series of special edition Sentinel Event Alerts that addresses concerns received from healthcare workers about the COVID-19 pandemic. “Sentinal Event Alert 62: Health care workers in the midst of crisis” provides examples to help healthcare organizations respond…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission, on January 20, announced that data collection for a new standardized performance measure assessing a patient’s functional and health status postoperatively will be required for the Advanced Certification for Total Hip and Total Knee Replacement (THKR) program. Organizations will be required to assess a patient’s…

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