Uncategorized Editor's Note The Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) announced May 1 that it has created a series of ‘Playbooks’ to help infection preventionists (IPs) and epidemiologists operationalize prevention efforts to help fight emerging infectious diseases. The pathogen-specific playbooks outline recommended practices for outbreak response, including: Pathogen…
Editor's Note The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that the Omicron subvariant XBB.1.16, also referred to as Arcturus, accounted for nearly 12% of COVID-19 cases in the US last week, and another relative, XBB.1.9.1 is responsible for 9% of cases, as of April 29, the April 28…
Editor's Note The National Institutes of Health (NIH) program, titled “Research With Activities Related to Diversity” (ReWARD) is now accepting grant applications, the American Hospital Association April 27 reports. The earliest submission deadline is May 5, and the final deadline for the first 6-month cycle is June 5. Applications can…
Editor's Note This meta-analysis by researchers from Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran; Harvard Medical School, Boston; and Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, finds a greater risk for Bell's palsy with COVID-19 infection, compared with COVID-19 vaccination. A total of 50 studies were included in the analysis with…
Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, on April 26, announced updates to the enforcement process for its hospital price transparency rule. CMS will now automatically impose a civil monetary penalty if hospitals do not submit a corrective action plan on time or complete it within 45 days.…
Editor's Note The Joint Commission, on April 19, posted the Top 5 requirements and corresponding elements of performance (EPs) identified most frequently as “not compliant” during surveys and reviews in 2022. The Top 5 for Hospitals have to do with: Implementing infection control activities when performing intermediate and high-level disinfection…
Editor's Note The Joint Commission, on April 12, announced that it and Kaiser Permanente are still accepting applications for the 2023 Bernard J. Tyson National Award for Excellence in Pursuit of Healthcare Equity. The award, now in its third year, gives national recognition to a healthcare organization for an intervention…
Editor's Note The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), on April 10, released its fiscal year (FY) 2024 Medicare inpatient prospective payment system (IPPS) proposed rule, which would increase Medicare payments by 2.8% for hospitals that are meaningful users of electronic health records and submit quality data. The 2.8%…
Editor's Note ECRI, on April 10, released a statement saying it is “deeply disturbed” by reports that nearly 99% of US hospitals have third-party tracking on their websites that transfers patient data to technology and social media companies, advertising firms, and data brokers. Besides the violation of privacy, ECRI says…
Editor's Note New safety considerations for using validated suicide risk screening tools related to implementation and training were released by The Joint Commission on March 27. When working with patients at risk of suicide, screening tools can help determine appropriate treatment options and whether further assessment is needed. However, it…
