Hospital Peer Review – July 1, 2006
July 1, 2006
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Hospitals getting more RFIs in 2006: What problems are surveyors finding?
Since JCAHO's unannounced survey process began in January 2006, the average number of requirements for improvement (RFIs) given to hospitals has increased to 6.9 as of April 2006, compared with 5.8 in 2005. -
JCAHO under fire again: JCR is the issue
Senators Charles Grassley (R-IA) and Max Baucus (D-MT) and Representative Pete Stark (D-CA) are calling for JCAHO to answer questions about its relationship with Joint Commission Resources (JCR), its consulting subsidiary, and to account for the results of its new accreditation process. -
Study: Why are wrong-site surgeries still occurring?
Do you assume that if the Joint Commission's Universal Protocol is followed, wrong-site surgery would always be prevented? A new study conducted by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality puts that assumption into question. -
Discharge Planning Advisor: Proposed Medicare discharge rule faces criticism
A new rule being proposed by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and drawing criticism from case managers who have reviewed it would require hospitals to alert all Medicare patients 24 hours before discharge that their costs probably won't be covered if they stay longer, and that they have until noon the next day to request a review of the discharge decision. -
Discharge Planning Advisor: Can CM impact this case? That's question in busy ED
"Why is the patient here? Why is the patient being admitted? What needs to be done, and is there a possibility it can be done in a less acute setting?" -
Discharge Planning Advisor: Specialty hospitals not exempt from transfer rules
Specialty hospitals that do not have emergency departments (EDs) are still subject to the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA) rules on acceptance of patients for transfer, cautions Stephen A. Frew, JD, a risk management specialist and web site publisher (www.medlaw.com). -
Discharge Planning Advisor: AHRQ study looks at admissions from ED
Fifty-five percent of admissions to the nation's community hospitals for conditions other than pregnancy, childbirth, and neonatal care begin in the hospital emergency department, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality reports. -
The Quality Cost Connection: Get actionable results from surveys
One of the very best methods to obtain feedback on performance is through the use of survey instruments that give respondents an opportunity to speak directly and frankly. -
Accreditation Field Report: Surveyors zero in on emergency preparedness
During a January 2006 survey at Baylor All Saints Medical Center at Fort Worth (TX), there was an additional focus on disaster planning during the environment of care (EOC) session, reports Paula Chaloupka, MSN, RN, director of care coordination. "This provided us a great critique of our disaster planning process," she says. -
Patient Safety Alert supplement