-
A Kansas Supreme Court ruling that defined physicians as "suppliers" prompted swift action by legislators, who have taken action on a bill that would exclude health care providers from being sued for deceptive practices under the state Consumer Protection Act.
-
The vaccine that provides protection against four types of human papillomavirus (HPV), a leading cause of cervical cancer, is recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), but drives to mandate it for adolescent girls have created a storm of controversy.
-
While the media glare on cases like those of brain-damaged, "vegetative" patients such as Terri Schiavo and Terry Wallis has brought plenty of attention to the questions surrounding the recovery of severely brain-injured patients, it has done little to clear up confusion, according to medical ethics experts.
-
If a patient has a sexually transmitted disease and you are fearful of him or her infecting others, you may be tempted to inform the patient's spouse or significant other. However, this is the patient's decision to make... not the doctor's.
-
Reducing health care worker fatigue may be one of the most important measures you can take to improve patient safety, according to The Joint Commission (formerly the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations).
-
If your hospital doesn't supply lift equipment to prevent back injuries, you may be purchasing them after injuries occur -- as an accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
-
The Joint Commission wants you to measure compliance with hand hygiene. But if you feel unsure about the best way to do that, you're not alone.
-
Grueling schedules and sleep deprivation long have been hallmarks of medical residency. But with a growing number of studies linking sleep deprivation to medical errors and worker injuries, pressure is building to rethink the method of medical education.
-
Hospitals face possible citation for failing to use a rapid HIV test after a bloodborne pathogen exposure, according to a letter of interpretation by the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
-
Once again, a trendsetter in occupational health, California has created a draft standard on aerosol transmissible diseases that would allow biannual fit-testing of N95-filtering facepiece respirators until at least 2012 but would require the use of powered air purifying respirators (PAPRs) during high-hazard procedures.
