Editor's Note The Joint Commission, on August 15, issued “Sentinel Event Alert 67: Preserving patient safety after a cyberattack.” The Alert focuses on risks associated with cyberattacks and provides recommendations on how healthcare organizations can deliver safe patient care if a cyberattack occurs. Actions suggested by The Joint Commission include:…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission, on August 9, announced that it is revising a performance measure for the advanced Total Hip and Total Knee Replacement (THKR) Certification Program—THKR-5: Postoperative Functional/Health Status Assessment—to align with a similar Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) measure. The recently adopted CMS performance measure—Hospital-Level,…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission, on August 9, announced the publication of a new guide from Joint Commission Resources (JCR) that provides basic knowledge and awareness for healthcare workers (HCWs) about the ways in which patients are diverse. The guide focuses on aspects of diversity that include ethnicity, race, culture,…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission, on August 2, announced that it had updated its Health Care Equity (HCE) Accreditation Standards & Resource Center and its HCE Certification Resource Center. A new resource available in the HCE Accreditation Standards & Resource Center is an On Demand Accelerate PI Webinar that provides…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission, on July 20, announced that it will eliminate and consolidate 200 additional standards, following the first reduction announced last year. Among the changes: Critical Access Hospitals: Of 150 in-scope elements of performance (EPs), 31 were deleted or consolidated, for a 15% reduction Office-Based Surgery: Of…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission, on July 19, announced that it and the National Quality Forum (NQF) are accepting applications for the 2023 John M. Eisenberg Patient Safety and Quality Awards through August 7. The awards, which recognize major achievements by individuals and organizations in their use of innovative approaches…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission, on July 19, announced that it has revised its Medication Compounding (MC) chapter for home care organizations and the Medication Compounding Certification (MDC) program, which is available to accredited hospitals, critical access hospitals, and home care pharmacy organizations. Among the revisions: Revising the requirements to…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission, on July 12, announced that it and the American Heart Association (AHA) have revised requirements for the Advanced Certification in Heart Failure program to align with the latest clinical practice guidelines for heart failure, effective January 1, 2024. Requirements for interdisciplinary team members have been…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission, on July 12, announced that it is making several changes to its critical access hospital (CAH) elements of performance (EPs) to better align with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Conditions of Participation, effective August 27, 2023. The changes are part of CMS’…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission, on July 5, announced that the Primary Stroke Center (PSC) Certification performance measure Stroke Volume (STK-VOL-1) is being renamed to Ischemic Stroke Patients who Receive Mechanical Endovascular Reperfusion Therapy, which removes the word “eligible” from the title. The change distinguishes ischemic stroke patients who receive…

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