Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on July 25 identified the recall by Baxter Healthcare Corporation of its Abacus Order Entry and Calculation Software application as Class I, the most serious. The Abacus software app can translate a physician’s order into a compounded solution. The recall was initiated…

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Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on July 19 added automated external defibrillators (AEDs) and chest drains/suction canisters and autotransfusion systems to its list of medical device shortages during COVID-19. The shortage of chest drains/suction canisters and autotransfusion systems is because of increased demand. The shortage of AEDs…

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In 2021, Patient Safety in Surgery published the article, “Incidence and OR team awareness of near-miss and retained surgical sharps: A national survey on United States operating rooms,” from a nationwide survey with over 400 surgeons, anesthesiologists, OR nurses and surgical technologists on the frequency of lost and retained sharps.…

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Editor's Note This Korean study finds that full COVID-19 vaccination was associated with a reduced risk of acute myocardial infarction (MI) and ischemic stroke after being infected with COVID-19. Of 592,719 patients with COVID-19 during the study period, 231,037 were included in the analysis, of whom 62,727 were never vaccinated…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission on July 20 announced a new “Healthcare Workforce Safety and Well-Being” website that provides resources to help healthcare workers (HCWs) advance the safety and resiliency of the organization. The website provides links to materials developed by The Joint Commission and healthcare-related organizations such as the…

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Editor's Note This study from the UK and France finds that sleep quality and circadian rhythms in night shift workers were poorer than in those who worked day shifts, even if they had been working the night shift for years. The analysis compares 63 night shift workers, working three or…

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Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration on July 20 identified the recall by Smiths Medical of certain Medfusion 3500 and 4000 Syringe Infusion Pumps as Class I, the most serious. The recall was initiated because of eight software malfunctions that affect different serial numbers and software versions. There have…

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Editor's Note This study, led by the University of Miami and sponsored by the CDC, finds that unvaccinated first responders (eg, law enforcement officers, firefighters, and others) were more likely to develop COVID-19 and less likely to believe in the effectiveness and safety of vaccines than their vaccinated counterparts. Of…

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Editor's Note The American College of Surgeons Quality Verification Program (ACS QVP) on July 18 recognized its inaugural 25 verified hospitals during the ACS Quality and Safety Conference in Chicago. Launched last summer, ACS QVP provides a standardized method for establishing, measuring, and improving a hospital’s quality infrastructure in all…

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Editor's Note This study led by researchers at the University of Colorado School of Medicine, UCHealth, Aurora, finds an association between healthcare workers (HCWs) reporting high childcare stress and burnout during COVID-19. The researchers surveyed 58,408 HCWs in 208 organizations from October 2021 to May 2022 on their concerns about…

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