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An epidemic of Clostridium difficile (C. diff ) in the United States is killing some 12,000 patients annually, in part because neither alcohol hand rubs nor soap and water can effectively remove the spore-forming bacillus from hands, researchers are finding.
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Smaller, community-based hospitals might face many of the same types of patient cases that require ethical decision-making; however, these hospitals often have fewer resources than large urban or academic centers with which to receive training in this area.
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A registry that serves as a collection point for Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment (POLST) forms has collected forms from about 18,000 people in Oregon since the registry went live Dec. 3, 2009...
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ECRI Institute, a Plymouth Meeting, PA-based independent, nonprofit organization that researches approaches to improving patient care, announces the launch of its new Patient Safety Blog.
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In contrast to another recent federal report that cited little progress against health care associated infections (HAIs), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports an 18% decline in the national incidence of central line-associated bloodstream infections.
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For Muslims at the death bed, spirituality and religious faith are the only empowering sources that help them to face death.
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Family members of patients who died following Alzheimer's, lung cancer, and renal failure consistently required increased bereavement services, according to a study of families of a hospice provider in Kentucky.
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A study published in the Journal of Pain and Symptom Management finds gaps in the use of evidence-based pain assessment and treatment practices for older adults with cancer in community-based hospice settings.
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A statement about palliative sedation from the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) offers guidance to hospice and palliative care professionals about the appropriate use of the technique.
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A first of its kind consensus statement released by the Heart Rhythm Society (HRS), developed in collaboration with other medical groups on both sides of the Atlantic, offers detailed guidance for physicians, allied professionals, and others in managing the complex issues they face when patients with pacemakers or implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs) are nearing the end of life or ask for device deactivation.
