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How to increase safety for your hospital’s outpatient procedures

Lisa Mulcahy Healthcare Administration

Outpatient surgeries are becoming more and more common, even encompassing procedures like spinal fusion, retinal operations and total joint replacement. Hospitals and patients often prefer outpatient procedures because they lower costs and take less time than surgery might during a traditional hospital stay. Yet, safety must also be paramount. As a hospital administrator, it has be your first priority. Research has shown how specific outpatient procedure strategies can ensure great outcomes, so use the cutting-edge info in this article to evaluate and improve your facility's ambulatory care approach.

5 surprising ways to create a more patient-friendly vibe at your practice

Lisa Mulcahy Healthcare Administration

You know that patient satisfaction is crucial. Because of this, you no doubt check all the standard boxes to keep people happy — you're flexible with appointment times, try not to make patients wait too long, and instruct your staff to be courteous. Cutting-edge research suggests that these steps may not be enough. Your patients can feel a lot more reassured, supported and comfortable if you make the effort to employ some unexpected — but incredibly effective — steps to create a more helpful, inclusive practice environment.

Treating bacteria in urine: IDSA recommendation update

Dorothy L. Tengler Medical & Allied Healthcare

Accurate diagnosis of urinary tract infections depends on both the presence of symptoms and a positive urine culture, although in most outpatient settings this diagnosis is made without the benefit of culture. Asymptomatic bacteriuria (ASB), the presence of bacteria in the urine without the symptoms of an infection, is common and has been a contributor to antibiotic misuse, which promotes resistance. According to updated ASB guidelines released by the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA), which recommend avoiding screening in certain groups of patients who don’t have symptoms, such as healthy non-pregnant women, elderly patients, those with diabetes and spinal cord injuries, new groups include infants and children, those who have had joint replacement or organ transplants.

Are you measuring the right things?

Linda Popky Business Management, Services & Risk Management

The good news about today's technology-enabled world is that we have the ability to measure just about anything. And the bad news is that in today’s technology-enabled world, we have the ability to measure just about anything. We are literally drowning in data points — some of them more useful than others, but all of them screaming for our attention. How do you determine on which measurements to focus? Here's the key point to remember: What gets measured gets managed.

Using point-of-care ultrasound can shorten pulse checks during CPR

Lynn Hetzler Medical & Allied Healthcare

Emergency department physicians have started using point-of-care ultrasounds (POCUS or POC ultrasound) to identify potentially reversible causes of pulseless electrical activity (PEA) in cardiac arrest patients. Increasing use of POC ultrasound has even led to its current recommendation by the American Heart Association (AHA). In PEA, the monitor will show electrical activity in the heart but the patient will not have a palpable pulse. Also known as electromechanical dissociation, PEA accounts for approximately 20 percent of out-of-hospital deaths.

Study: Teeth whitening products may do more harm than good

Tammy Hinojos Oral & Dental Healthcare

Home teeth whitening kits are a popular and easy way to brighten your smile. You can buy a variety of teeth whitening strips at the grocery store and you can get more potent, faster-working formulations from your dentist. You place the strips over your teeth and leave them in place for a few hours. A few days or weeks later? Voila! Brighter, whiter choppers. Americans spend more than a billion dollars a year on these teeth whitening products. But a new study shows that while these products do whiten teeth, they may also be damaging them.

Can patient-physician recordings be good for care?

Christina Thielst Healthcare Administration

Historically, healthcare administrators have been concerned about the risks of patients recording their conversations. Perhaps they should be more concerned about the risks of patients not having a recording of their physician or other caregiver. A recent article in Healthcare Executive examines the issue from an ethics perspective and looks at the benefits for the patient’s understanding of what is being communicated during an encounter. Patients or their family caregivers can replay sessions to clarify information they believe they have received, or simply to reassure themselves.

ED visits rise, along with their costs for everyone

Scott E. Rupp Medical & Allied Healthcare

Emergency department visits increased by nearly 10 million patients in 2016 compared to 2015 data, according to a recent report the from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The total of 145.6 million visits is the highest number reported. Even with the total number of visits increasing, patients who used the ED for regular care decreased. Per the report, the percentage of emergency patients with nonurgent medical symptoms dropped from 5.5% to 4.3%.

Pediatricians key for critical early intervention in speech, language impairments

Sheilamary Koch Medical & Allied Healthcare

School and social successes hinge more on language ability than any other factor for the vast majority of children. Pediatricians and family doctors who have regular contact with infants and their parents are uniquely positioned to help identify young children who demonstrate delayed development within the speech, language and hearing realm. A quick referral to a corresponding specialist for evaluation can make the difference between these infants and toddlers experiencing years of struggle and having the tools to navigate the normal challenges of childhood.

First-of-its-kind report lays foundation for world food sustainability

Scott E. Rupp Food & Beverage

The EAT-Lancet Commission on Food, Planet and Health released its scientific review in early 2019, publishing the world's first scientific targets for healthy diets and sustainable food production. It provides "targets that join civil society, public health and environmental conservation’s various goals toward health and sustainability." The purpose of the report is to provide a framework for the "urgent actions" needed from consumers, policymakers, businesses and government agencies to transform the food system. Leading scientists in nutrition and public health laid out global guidelines for a universal, healthy diet.

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