Quality and Safety
The health IT hazard that tops the ECRI Institute's top hazards list for 2014 is a recurring one, having been singled out by many safety organizations as something to beware.
The Joint Commission's Annual Report on Quality and Safety 2013, shows that 33 percent -- or 1,099 hospitals -- of all Joint Commission-accredited hospitals that reported accountability measure data for 2012 ranked as top performing hospitals using evidence-based care processes.
Greece is no stranger to fiscal turmoil. It has one of the highest unemployment rates in the Western world and has racked up more than €321 billion of public debt. But some say the country's two-and a-half-year-old e-prescribing system is on the right track, helping reduce pharmaceutical expenditures by 50 percent.
Residents of New Hampshire and Vermont can count on quicker response to signs of a stroke with a new telestroke program launched by Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center and Mayo Clinic. The program provides 24/7 access to telestroke specialists via videoconferencing technology.
Three recent deaths at the Memphis VA Medical Center emergency department could probably have been prevented with better communication, digital documentation and better layout of the emergency department, according to an investigation by the Veterans Administration Inspector General.
"The mismatch between patients and their clinical data is a serious and growing patient safety issue," says Meryl Bloomrosen, vice president of thought leadership, practice excellence and public policy at AHIMA, the organization of health information management professionals.
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius testified Oct. 30 before the House Committee on Energy and Commerce on the failings of HealthCare.gov, making her the highest ranked official to be questioned over the website flaws.
Thousands of clinical providers and provider organizations across the country will gain free access to what athenahealth executives describe as "a safe, privileged environment in which they can easily submit patient safety concerns and findings as well as share best practices to enhance safety and improve care."
Mobile devices have found their way into virtually every corner of the world, even in the most remote and least technologically developed countries. And this reality, says Joan Cornet, mHealth director at Mobile World Capital in Barcelona, has a "huge impact" on the potential of mobile health going forward.
Healthgrades' new report reveals how hospital selection can dramatically affect patient outcomes. The study, released Oct. 22, shows that individuals are far more likely to die or suffer complications at hospitals receiving the lowest Healthgrades rating.