Editor's Note The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has deemed Smiths Medical’s recall of Proport Plastic Implantable Ports a Class 1, the most severe designation indicating serious risk of injury or death. The devices are designed for repeated venous access for injections, infusions, and/or blood samples. According to the…

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Editor's Note Chief data officer (CDO) is a fast-growing C-suite role across the economy, with the notable exception of healthcare. The reasons why might be surprising: these roles have already been filled. Rather than growing, they are evolving. That’s the primary message of a March 4 report in Becker’s Hospital…

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Editor's Note A new partnership between OrganOx and ProCure On-Demand aims to increase the number of viable donor livers for transplantation by combining advanced perfusion technology with expert recovery services, Fierce Healthcare reported March 17. The collaboration seeks to reduce the number of discarded organs and improve transplant success rates…

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Editor's Note Although hospitals are already integrating artificial intelligence (AI), nurses warn that the technology may undermine their expertise and compromise patient care, The Associated Press (AP) reported March 16. The push for AI in healthcare stems from widespread nursing shortages. More than 100,000 nurses left the workforce during the…

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Editor's Note From operational efficiency and budgetary concerns to staffing issues and vendor relationships, the day-to-day concerns of perioperative professionals are fully reflected in the agenda for the 2025 OR Manager Conference, scheduled for October 28-30 in Anaheim, California. The line-up of in-depth, targeted educational sessions is divided into seven…

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Editor's Note Preoperative use of GLP-1 receptor agonists was not significantly associated with an increased risk of aspiration pneumonia or acute respiratory failure after surgery, according to a March 4 report in MedPage Today. The article focuses on a retrospective cohort study of over 366,000 surgical patients found no meaningful…

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Editor's Note Nurses who don’t get enough sleep face a significantly higher risk of common infections, including colds, pneumonia, and bronchitis, according to a March 10 report from HealthDay. The article focuses on a study published in Chronobiology International finding that sleep debt—particularly among night shift nurses—weakens immune defenses, potentially…

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Editor's Note Recognizing hospitals that excel at providing top-quality care while preventing serious safety events, Healthgrades’ 2025 Patient Safety Excellence Awards distinguish 442 hospitals in 40 different states. Announced March 11, the awards are based on inpatient MedPAR data from 2021 to 2023. Recognized hospitals must meet clinical quality thresholds,…

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Editor's Note A systematic review found no strong evidence that compliance with the CMS Severe Sepsis and Septic Shock Management Bundle (SEP-1) reduces mortality, raising questions about its inclusion in hospital performance measures, according to a February 19 report from the University of Minnesota’s Center for Infectious Disease Research and…

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Editor's Note Reducing the negative influence of implicit bias requires system-level interventions to ensure procedures align with best practices for all patients, according to results of new research on outcomes for vascular surgery patients. Published February 26 in JAMA Surgery, the study showed that implicit racial bias among vascular specialists…

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