Editor's Note The Food & Drug Administration (FDA) on November 26 announced a voluntary recall by B. Braun Medical (Bethlehem, Pennsylvania) of 22 lots of blood administration sets. The recall was initiated because of the potential for leakage at the joint between the blood filters and tubing. This could force…

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Editor's Note In this study, the most important data-use practice associated with successful implementation of enhanced recovery pathways (ERPs) was data feedback to frontline providers of process and outcome measures. Of 140 hospitals analyzed, 52% reported previous ERP implementation, with wide variations in data-use practices. Feedback of process and outcome…

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Editor's Note The Food & Drug Administration (FDA) on November 25 approved a new system for the delivery of tympanostomy tubes into the eardrums of young children without using general anesthesia. The Tubes Under Local Anesthesia (Tula) System (Tusker Medical, Menlo Park, California) is the first ear tube delivery system…

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Editor's Note Care coordination strategies were found to be associated with high overall hospital quality star ratings from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) in this study. A total of 710 general acute care noncritical access hospitals that received star ratings and responded to the 2015 American Hospital…

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Editor's Note In this study, a software app that tracks perioperative controlled substance use and is integrated into the electronic health and pharmacy records and database systems was associated with a decrease in management errors. This analysis includes data on missing controlled substance medications, controlled substance kits, and witness return…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission on November 20 announced an update to the book, “Planning, Design, and Construction of Health Care Facilities,” which was developed in partnership with the American Institute of Architects Academy of Architecture for Health (AIA/AAH). This 4th edition includes: Eight new case studies that highlight design challenges,…

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Editor's Note In this study, the use of alcohol-based hand rub on nitrile examination gloves did not compromise glove integrity or hamper the ability of anesthesia providers to safely perform anesthesia functions. A total of 50 new gloves (not exposed to alcohol-based hand rub) were tested for integrity, and one…

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Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on November 19 updated the device failure associated with Getinge’s Maquet/Datascope Intra-aortic Balloon Pumps (IABPs) in a letter to health care providers. Since 2017, the FDA has received more than 75 reports of the IABPs shutting down while running on battery. Five…

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Editor's Note Even minor surgical procedures are associated with high risks for mortality in patients who are frail, finds this study. In this retrospective analysis of 432,828 patients in the Veterans Administration Surgical Quality Improvement Program, frailty was associated with increased 30-, 90-, and 180-day mortality across all levels of…

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Editor's Note Artificial intelligence (AI) was able to predict which patients were likely to develop an irregular heart rhythm, even when physicians interpreted results as normal, and identified patients at increased risk of dying of any cause within 1 year, in this study presented November 16 at the American Heart…

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