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Virulent, Drug-resistant Pneumonia Bug Emerges in China ICU
In particularly unwelcome news from China, researchers report they have isolated a strain of Klebsiella pneumoniae that is both hypervirulent and highly drug-resistant. A worse combination is difficult to imagine. Usually, hypervirulent K. pneumoniae remains susceptible to drugs, but acquiring resistance apparently through genetic transfer in nature means this is a bug that could possibly infect heathy people in the community, let alone frail hospital patients.
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Poor Oral Care During Hospitalization May Lead to Pneumonia
Ventilator-associated pneumonia is a commonly tracked healthcare-associated infection, and frequently the target of interventions to protect patients. On the other hand, non-ventilator healthcare-associated pneumonia falls into a gray area, where it often remains unreported in surveillance systems.
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CMS, Joint Commission Are Citing for ‘Flash’ Sterilization
The abiding principle is that if you must rapidly sterilize an instrument — usually in an effort to return it to the sterile field — you must immediately use it.
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SSIs: A Common and Costly Infection
The CDC has issued new guidelines for the prevention of the most common and costly healthcare-associated infection: surgical site infections.
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Highly Drug-resistant C. auris Continues to Emerge in U.S.
The CDC is urging infection preventionists and their clinical colleagues to have a high index of suspicion for emerging Candida auris, a fungus that spreads more like bacteria, can be highly drug-resistant, and survives on skin and environmental surfaces for prolonged periods.
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Secondary Heart Failure Affects Readmissions
Heart failure that develops or worsens during a hospital stay can affect outcomes, costs, and readmissions, so hospitals are advised to identify patients at risk for secondary heart failure.
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Hartford Healthcare Launching Quality Initiatives
Hartford HealthCare, a healthcare network in Connecticut, is launching a series of quality initiatives aimed at getting patients the care they need quickly and safely.
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Copy-and-Paste Continues to Threaten Documentation Safety
Copy-and-paste is so easy and time saving that it can be tempting to overuse it in the medical record, and some electronic medical records encourage clinicians to use blocks of text over and over. Liberal use of copy-and-paste can diminish the quality and reliability of an electronic medical record, however.
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Staffing Grid Improves Satisfaction for Patients and Nurses, Reduces Falls
A new staffing grid focused on improving patient, nurse and staff satisfaction contributed to reducing patient falls by 50% and staff injuries by 81% over approximately one year at Sharp Memorial Hospital in San Diego.
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Improved Patient Handoffs Require Comprehensive Approach
Hospitals are paying more attention to patient handoffs as a crucial element in quality and patient safety, with an evolution toward seeing them as not just a distinct task, but more as a comprehensive strategy.