Editor’s Note In a setback for healthcare mergers and acquisitions (M&A), the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) will continue enforcing strict antitrust guidelines established under the Biden administration, Healthcare Dive February 19 reports. Bucking expectations of a more lenient approach under the new administration, FTC Chair Andrew Ferguson confirmed the decision,…

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Editor’s Note Pregnancy complications—including life-threatening sepsis—surged in Texas after the state banned abortion in 2021, according to a ProPublica analysis of seven years’ worth of state hospital data. In a February 20 report, the outlet details how sepsis rates for women hospitalized after second-trimester pregnancy loss rose by more than…

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Editor's Note An artificial intelligence (AI) tool is showing significant promise in reducing the administrative workload for nurses and clinical partners on a 48-bed surgical unit at Cedars-Sinai, according to a February 12 Cedars-Sinai Newsroom Q&A with Rachel Coren, MPH, MS, vice president and associate chief information officer, and Peachy…

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Editor's Note Researchers at Northwestern University successfully reversed hernias in male mice and restored normal anatomy without surgical intervention, according to a February 5 university announcement. The study also found that human hernia tissue shared the same molecular characteristics observed in the mouse model, suggesting a similar biological mechanism. According…

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Editor's Note Recent legislative efforts in Florida and Mississippi aim to expand the authority of advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) with measures that would remove supervisory requirements and allow independent practice for certain nurse practitioners. The efforts underscore an ongoing, nationwide debate over the role of APRNs in addressing provider…

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Editor's Note Only humans should be called nurses, argues Oregon State Representative Travis Nelson, a Portland Democrat and practicing nurse who recently introduced new legislation aiming to prevent the title from applying to artificial intelligence (AI) or any non-human entity. As detailed in a February 4 report from Nurse.org, House…

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Editor's Note Patients aged 50 to 70 undergoing heart valve replacement may benefit from mechanical valves over biological ones, according to a new study from the University of Bristol. Healthcare-in-Europe.com reported the news February 13. As detailed in the article, short-term outcomes between the two options were similar. However, mechanical…

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Editor's Note Virtual reality (VR) may help older patients manage anxiety before open-heart surgery, according to a study published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings. Medical Xpress covered the news February 12. According to the article, researchers found that immersive VR and tablet-based VR significantly lowered anxiety levels, offering a nonpharmacological alternative…

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Editor's Note Although human trafficking’s infiltration into healthcare labor and supply chains is pervasive, many clinicians and other professionals remain unaware of the extent of the issue, according to a February 3 opinion piece in MedPage Today. While efforts have focused on identifying trafficking victims in clinical settings, healthcare organizations…

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Editor's Note As executive director of the Association for Health Care Resource & Materials Management (AHRMM), Michael Schiller, CMRP, gets regular insight into strategies employed by healthcare organizations, suppliers, technology leaders and frontline staff—insight he was happy to share with OR business Management Conference attendees in a February 11 presentation.…

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