Hospital Employee Health – November 1, 2004
November 1, 2004
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Expert says pandemic flu would be much worse than SARS outbreak
Hospitals need to ramp up their preparedness for pandemic influenza, a threat that is heightened by the continuing spread of avian influenza among birds and mammals in Asia, cautions the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). -
Half the nation’s flu vaccine for this season is delayed
Contamination of some lots of this seasons influenza vaccine has led to a delay in distribution of about half the nations supply. -
Model may be at fault if fit-tests are a failure
Poorly fitting respirators may cause additional headaches for hospitals as they scramble to fit-test hundreds of employees to comply with U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) regulations. -
Hospitals feel the pain of annual fit-test rule
Do you feel overwhelmed by the annual fit-testing rule? Youre in good company. Most of your peers at hospitals around the country rank the difficulty with compliance as a 7 out of 10 or worse, according to a survey by the American Association of Occupational Health Nurses (AAOHN) in Atlanta. -
Quick Q&A: Expert answers EHPs’ fit-test questions
Employee health professionals face logistical issues as they scramble to fit-test hundreds of employees. Hospital Employee Health posed some common fit-testing questions to respiratory protection expert Roy McKay, PhD, director of the occupational pulmonology services program at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine. -
Work environment may hasten nurse retirement
Work stress and dissatisfaction with the work environment may hasten the retirement of aging nurses, according to a study by the Center for American Nurses, an Austin, TX-based affiliate of the American Nurses Association. -
JCAHO Update for Infection Control: Joint Commission recognizes Pittsburgh hospital for quality and infection control in patient safety
A multifaceted patient safety program that included a focus on infection control has garnered a Pittsburgh hospital a 2004 John M. Eisenberg Patient Safety and Quality Award. -
JCAHO Update for Infection Control: Patient safety program focuses on C. diff infections
An award-winning patient safety program at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center in McKeesport, PA, includes a focus on preventing troublesome Clostridium difficile infections. -
JCAHO Update for Infection Control: 2005 patient safety goals warn of sound-alike drugs
New patient safety goals for 2005 by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations include preventing patient falls and avoiding potentially fatal mix-ups with similarly named drugs. -
JCAHO Update for Infection Control: JCAHO, CMS are merging hospital quality measures
The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) are working together in completely aligning current and future common hospital quality measures in their condition-specific performance measure sets. -
Why JCAHO cares about hospital ergonomics
The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations wants you to use ergonomic interventions. -
Latex allergy update: Is powder-free carefree?
With low-protein, powder-free latex gloves available, has the issue of latex allergy been resolved? For some hospitals, changes in products have reduced new employee sensitivities almost to zero. Other hospitals are still seeking alternatives to latex to create a latex-safe environment. -
CA governor vetoes first-ever zero-lift bill
California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed a bill that would have made his state the first in the country to require hospitals to use lift teams. The state legislature passed a bill requiring hospitals to adopt a zero-lift policy by using specially trained lift teams and lift equipment for patient handling. -
Bioterrorism Watch supplement
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2004 Salary Survey Results
How do you make the most of your job and your career after a long tenure in the nursing profession?