Same-Day Surgery – June 1, 2016
June 1, 2016
View Issues
-
Assaults on Anesthetized Patients Lead to Lawsuits
The assaults and pending litigation have raised concerns among surgery providers about how best to protect vulnerable patients.
-
Thousands of Patients Seek Testing After Healthcare Worker Charged with Drug Diversion
In an all-too-familiar scenario, a healthcare worker charged with diverting drugs in Colorado had a history of moving from facility to facility, which has prompted several other facilities to advise thousands of patients to get tested for bloodborne pathogens.
-
Look for Weak Links to Prevent Drug Diversion
Kimberly New, RN, JD, founder of Diversion Specialists in Knoxville, TN, who frequently consults with healthcare facilities on drug diversion, cites the following common areas of weakness in diversion prevention programs:
-
Surgery-related Outbreaks from Drug Diversion
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) assisted state and local health departments in the investigation of the following infection outbreaks stemming from drug diversion activities that involved surgical healthcare providers who tampered with injectable drugs.
-
Healthcare Facilities Could Face Liability From Recall of Duodenoscope
Healthcare facilities and providers face potential liability related to the use of a scope that has been recalled and is the subject of lawsuits against the manufacturer.
-
Bills Aim to Help Prevent Superbug Outbreaks
Congressman Ted W. Lieu (D-CA) has introduced two pieces of legislation after a yearlong investigation that he requested by the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform found significant gaps in existing law that contributed to a nationwide problem of superbug outbreaks due to tainted duodenoscopes.
-
Top 10 Pet Peeves from Same-Day Surgery Readers
A couple of months ago, I asked Same-Day Surgery readers to send me a list of their “pet peeves” after I listed mine. I received almost 100 emails from readers listing what irritates them the most.
-
American College of Surgeons Revises Statement Addressing Concurrent Surgeries
The American College of Surgeons has revised its Statement on Principles on the responsibility of the primary surgeon during surgery with new language on concurrent, overlapping, and multidisciplinary operations.
-
Seizure Drug Gabapentin Lowers PONV Risk
The anticonvulsant medication gabapentin, which already is a useful part of strategies to control pain after surgery, also effectively reduces the common complication of postoperative nausea and vomiting, reports a study in Anesthesia & Analgesia.
-
Sponge Counting System Backed with Guarantee Plus $5 Million Indemnity Protection
Stryker Corp. in Kalamazoo, MI, has announced a risk-sharing program that protects investment in the company’s SurgiCount Safety-Sponge System with up to $5 million in product-liability indemnification and a rebate of the cost of implementing SurgiCount.
-
Impact of Patient Age, ASA Status on OR Decisions
In a recently published study, decision tables allowed OR managers at one hospital to schedule procedures more accurately, according to the study’s authors.
-
WHO Beats CDC Handrub Method for Less Bacteria
A recent study of two techniques for hand hygiene using an alcohol-based handrub found that the six-step method by the World Health Organization is superior to the three-step method by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.