Editor's Note The Joint Commission on March 21 approved a new National Patient Safety Goal (NPSG) on catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) for accredited nursing care centers. Also approved were revisions for the existing CAUTI NPSG for accredited hospitals and critical access hospitals, which were made to bring the NPSG…

Read More

Editor's Note The Joint Commission on March 16 announced that the new Patient Blood Management Certification Review Process Guide (2016) is now available. Contents include a description of activities that take place during an on-site certification review and tips to prepare for the review process.   Patient Blood Management Certification…

Read More

Editor's Note The Joint Commission and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are collaborating on an initiative designed to adapt, enhance, and disseminated CDC guidelines on infection prevention in ambulatory health care settings. The initiative, “Adaptation and Dissemination of Outpatient Infection PrevenTion (ADOPT) Guidance,” will focus on free-standing…

Read More

Editor's Note The Joint Commission announced on March 9 that the Michigan Health & Hospital Association and its member hospitals have partnered with the Joint Commission Center for Transforming Healthcare on a statewide high reliability organization improvement effort. Michigan is the second state to partner with the Center; South Carolina…

Read More

Editor's Note The Joint Commission on March 2 issued an update of its sentinel event statistics through the end of 2015. Of the 936 sentinel events reviewed, the most frequently reported was unintended retention of a foreign body at 116 events, followed by wrong-patient, wrong-site, or wrong-procedure at 111. Operative/postoperative…

Read More

Editor's Note The Joint Commission announced February 24 that it has approved two new Human Resources requirements for accredited hospitals, critical access hospitals, and ambulatory care organizations that provide diagnostic imaging services. These requirements specify minimum qualifications for technologists who perform computed tomography exams. They will be available in the…

Read More

Certain topics in OR Manager bear repeating, and high reliability is one example. The concept, put forth by the Joint Commission in 2013 to improve quality and safety of patient care, is slowly gaining traction as more facilities embrace its principles. Last March, we reported on high reliability practices at…

Read More

High reliability has now permeated the healthcare literature, but some clinicians are still unsure exactly what it means. A simple definition offered by Coleen Smith, MBA, RN, CPHQ, director of High Reliability Initiatives for the Joint Commission Center for Transforming Healthcare, is “excellence in patient care for every patient, every…

Read More

Editor's Note The Joint Commission on February 11 published it’s latest Quick Safety newsletter, which focuses on informed consent. Implementing an effective informed consent process poses numerous challenges, and frequently patients do not understand the risks, benefits, and alternatives involved in their treatment or surgical procedures, the Joint Commission says.…

Read More

Editor's Note The Joint Commission on February 16 launched a new initiative called “Pioneers in Quality.” The program provides education and support for hospitals as they strive to meet the growing requirements for electronic clinical quality measures. Key components of the initiative include: Educational webinars Resource portal Modified annual report focusing…

Read More