The Joint Commission released a new hospital program fire drill requirement in surgical areas which detail specific drill elements. Requirements
Hospital Fire Drill Requirements for Surgical Areas Read More »
New and revised survey topics from the Center’s for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) took effect in January 2022. You should expect survey teams to include these topics during review of your facility. These include surveyor expectations for COVID-19 Vaccination of Healthcare Personnel, reinforcing EMTALA obligations for maternal patients, revisions to the Emergency Management Appendix
Key CMS Survey Topics for 2022 Read More »
New and revised survey topics from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) took effect in January 2022. You should expect survey teams to include these topics during the review of your facility.
Key CMS Survey Topics for 2022 Read More »
Have you considered the benefits a mock survey can provide to help your team identify risk areas and opportunities for improvement? A mock survey is an excellent way to check your alignment with regulatory requirements and ensure your survey readiness.
Mock Surveys: Determining Your Regulatory Alignment Read More »
The Rights and Responsibilities of the Individual (RI) chapter updates were just released by the Joint Commission. These updates go into effect on July 1, 2022.
Rights and Responsibilities (RI) Chapter Update- Just Released Read More »
Titrating medications is the process of adjusting medication dosage for maximum benefit without adverse side effects. It can be a fine line to walk
Treatment Planning Read More »
Titrating intravenous medications is the process of adjusting medication dosage for maximum benefit without inducing adverse side effects. It can be a fine line to walk, but when staff follow clearly defined parameters through well-crafted titration orders, it can be performed with a high degree of safety and ensure that your practice is aligned with
Titration Orders: Are you set for safe practice? Read More »
In their May 2021 Newsletter, The Joint Commission relayed increasing concerns regarding observations of staff not following proper infection control practices with both the use of glucometers and during insulin administration. These observations have been to such a degree of concern for infection risk that organizations have received Immediate Threat citations. Staff are not following
Glucometer Infection Control Practices Read More »
As of March 15, 2021, The Joint Commission will be reverting back to pre-pandemic survey procedures in light of reduced cases of COVID-19 across the U.S. according to a message that was sent by Mark Pelletier, Chief Operating Officer and Chief Nurse Executive of The Joint Commission today. This return to pre-pandemic survey procedures means
The Joint Commission is Returning to Pre-Pandemic Survey Procedures Read More »
Being ready for situations where your patient requires resuscitation is critical. Staff complete training in basic/advanced life support, and some staff complete more advanced skills in pediatric and neonatal resuscitation, as appropriate. There has been increased focus on drills and simulation to better prepare the team in these life-saving measures. However, has anyone looked at
How to Keep Your Code Carts from Crashing and Burning Read More »
Ensuring that you store medications, food items, lab specimens, blood, and other items and supplies at appropriate temperatures in cold storage is essential to ensure your patients receive safe and effective product. However, maintaining a record of these temperature measurements seem to confound a lot of organizations out there. We frequently observe incomplete refrigerator/freezer logs
Are Your Freezer/Refrigerator Logs Giving You Frostbite? Read More »
In November 1999, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) published their landmark report on the medical error crisis in U.S. healthcare called To Err Is Human: Building a Safer Health System. This was followed in March 2001 with an IOM report on healthcare quality called Crossing the Quality Chasm: A New Health System for the 21st
Have We Crossed Over the Quality Chasm or Are We Hanging Mid-Air? Read More »
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