Articles Tagged With:
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Is Death Imminent? Conflicts Occur if Clinicians Do Not Make It Clear
Poor communication on prognosis prevents the family from making decisions based on the true situation. If surrogates do not realize death is imminent, they cannot plan for hospice care or contact family members to be there for the patient’s last moments.
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Advance Care Planning Can Lower Odds of Aggressive End-of-Life Treatment
Advance care planning was associated with significantly lower odds of indicators of aggressive end-of-life care (i.e., hospital death, hospital admissions, intensive care, delayed hospice referrals, and chemotherapy). Cancer patients who engaged in advance care planning were 50% more likely to complete Do Not Resuscitate orders compared to cancer patients without an advance directive.
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Magnet Program Emphasizes Ethics in Patient Care
Ethics is included in the program’s foundational items, which must be in place for the hospital to be certified as a Magnet hospital. The organizational overview requirement mandates the hospital to create policies and procedures that address patient ethical issues.
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Nurse Champion Role Helps Identify Ethics Issues
With the right training and advocacy, nurses can identify and address ethical issues, along with moral distress. They might be more willing to speak up about ethical issues encountered in daily practice and identify institutional resources to assist.
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Ethics Work Affects Entire Hospital: Data Can Prove It
Ethics work aligns with many issues that are top of mind for hospital leaders. How can ethicists measure that?
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The Joint Commission’s Updated Ethics Standards Spark Debate
The Joint Commission could play a role in elevating the professionalism and value of ethics programs nationally with some enhanced standards, encouraging formal attention to best practices and evaluation — and evolving toward the possibility of more rigor over time.
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Email Retention Requirements for HIPAA Often Misunderstood
HIPAA requires that certain emails and other electronic communications be retained for a set period, but covered entities often misunderstand exactly what must be saved and for how long. The Security Rule requires healthcare organizations and health plans to retain electronic communications containing HIPAA policies and procedures for at least six years.
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OCR’s Report to Congress Shows Increase in Complaints
The Office for Civil Rights’ annual report to Congress showed “significant increases” in HIPAA complaints — 34,077 new complaints in 2021, a 25% increase from 2020. Complaints increased 39% from 2017 to 2021.
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Breaches Sometimes Kept Secret, but Decision Is Highly Dangerous
Cybersecurity professionals often are told to keep breaches confidential, according to a recent survey that suggests healthcare organizations may be risking serious consequences for not reporting the improper loss of protected health information controlled by HIPAA.
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Oral Medication to Treat ‘Hot Flashes’ Could Be Available Soon
The FDA has approved the first neurokinin 3 receptor antagonist to alleviate symptoms associated with moderate to severe vasomotor symptoms caused by menopause.