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COVID Resurges Amid Pandemic Fatigue, Anemic Vaccine Uptake

As more hospitals nationally go to universal masking for patient care, we see the other side of an incoming problem: Only 19% of adults older than 18 years of age have received the latest vaccine against SARS-CoV-2, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Pandemic Fatigue, Disinformation Stunt Uptake of Respiratory Vaccines

A vaccination malaise that has beset much of the public appears to have extended to healthcare workers as well. In addition to citing an abysmal COVID-19 vaccination rate of 17% for healthcare workers during the 2022-2023 flu season, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention pointed to a “lack of provider recommendation” as one of four key reasons patients are skipping immunizations, with the others being concerns about serious side effects, the occurrence of minor side effects, and a lack of time or forgetfulness.

CDC: PPE Should be Readily Available for Workers

New draft patient isolation guidelines recently approved by advisors to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention emphasized that healthcare workers have N95 respirators, masks, eye protection, and other personal protective equipment readily available.

As OSHA Violence Regulation Stalls, States Move to Protect Healthcare Workers

After more than a decade of urgent calls for federal labor officials to adopt a standard to prevent violence against healthcare workers, 600 determined nurses came to the massive, dome-capped Texas State Capitol in Austin in February 2023. The bipartisan bill that the TNA and the Texas Hospital Association jointly lobbied for was passed into law effective Sept. 1, 2023. Under the conditions of the legislation, healthcare facilities have until Sept 1, 2024, to enact the key provisions.

Working with Private Care Management Professionals to Help Aging Patients

While inflation continues to be a part of the economic landscape of 2024, aging healthcare consumers and their families are considering their options for managing care. With that, private care management, paid for by the consumer, is becoming more popular. These private care management professionals work with clients and their families to design a care plan to carry them through the various stages of aging.

Navigating Elder Care and Long-Term Care

Elder care in the United States is increasingly a “major source of moral distress in the hospital case management and social work world,” according to Lisa Bednarz, LCSW, CMAC, ACM-SW, ASW-G, regional director of case management for Robert Wood Johnson Barnabas Health.

Preventive Care During an Emergency Requires Effective Care Coordination

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted standard health system practices in a way that allowed healthcare researchers and professionals to learn how to improve their preparedness for emergencies and disasters. Case management leaders and others in health systems need to think about their workflow and how it was disrupted during the early months of the pandemic, as well as later in the crisis.

Social Needs Data Are Useful, but Consistent Collection Needed

Case managers and researchers need data that can be used to improve care coordination and prevent hospitalizations and ED visits. But the challenge is deciding which patient data are useful and which are not.

Novel Method Proposed to Optimize Care Coordination

Healthcare organizations need new methods to improve care coordination and patient-centered care. A co-author of a recent study proposes a method to determine whether a patient needs primary care or specialty care, naming the categories as “lifer” and “destination.”

More Efficient Social Care Programs Could Improve Screening and Tailor Solutions

Researchers are finding that Accountable Health Communities need greater flexibility in activities geared toward improving patients’ health-related social risks. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services adopted quality metrics for health systems, requiring them to screen for health-related social risks. The authors of a new study found that the model does not allow for the flexibility needed to ensure hospitals sustain the adoption of AHC activities.