Editor's Note When used after terminal cleaning, the pulsed-xenon ultraviolet light (PX-UV) significantly reduced contamination on high-touch surfaces in the OR, this study finds. This analysis included 1,464 surface samples from 136 ORs at 23 hospitals after terminal cleaning and again after PX-UV disinfection. Results showed the average colony forming…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission announced on August 22 that several revisions will be implemented to the Medication Compounding Certification program and Home Care Accreditation program’s Medication Compounding chapter, effective January 1, 2019. The revisions were made to maintain consistency with current United States Pharmacopeia (USP) 795 (Pharmaceutical Compounding−Nonsterile Preparations)…

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The Munro Pressure Ulcer Risk Assessment Scale for Perioperative Patients© (Munro Scale) has made great strides in the past year. The tool, which assesses patients’ risk levels at each phase of surgery (preoperative, intraoperative, and postoperative), is available from AORN. Cassendra Munro, MSN, RN, CNOR, developed the Munro Scale and…

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As healthcare strives to become an industry of high-reliability organizations, identifying problems proactively is key. ECRI Institute’s annual Top 10 Patient Safety Concerns for Healthcare Organizations list highlights looming patient safety challenges and offers resources for addressing them. In selecting this year’s list, ECRI Institute relied on data regarding events…

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Editor's Note New data released in the Protenus Breach Barometer shows  more than 3.14 million patient records were compromised in 142 breach incidents reported to Health and Human Services or the media from April to June 2018, the August 8 Healthcare Informatics reports. This number is up from 1.13 million…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission announced August 1 that beginning September 1, callers to its patient safety event phone line (1-800-994-6610) will receive automated instructions on how to file a report or concern. The line will no longer be answered by a staff member. The Joint Commission says the phone…

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Editor's Note Cybersecurity firm Cryptonite reports there were eight major healthcare data breaches in the first half of 2018, down from 19 during the same time in 2017, according to the July 18 Healthcare Informatics. However, the number of patient records breached this year was up, with more than 1.9…

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Social and demographic factors play a huge role in any patient’s overall health and recovery from surgery. When treating patients who lack health insurance, family support, or language/literacy skills—among many other possible disadvantages—providing safe patient care can extend well beyond clinical aspects. OR managers and their staffs may take on…

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Anyone who has been involved in an OR design and construction project knows it is a labor-intensive, time-consuming effort—and usually far from seamless. There’s almost always something no one thinks of until it is too late, and the staff must learn to live with the flaws. But a multidisciplinary team…

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Injuries from needlesticks—whether from disposable syringes, IV catheters, or blood collection devices—accounted for more than 30% of all sharps injuries in 2016, especially among nurses. Injuries from skin injections alone accounted for 25.7% of all sharps injuries that year. And, for the first time, injuries occurring from suturing during procedures…

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