Medical Errors News and Research

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Research Roundup: Health law's under-26 coverage 'significantly increased' access to care; Thousands of surgical 'never events' occur each year

The health law allows young adults to remain under their parents' health insurance plans until age 26, raising questions about the law's overall impact on access to care. Researchers used data from two nationally representative surveys to compare young adults who've gained access to dependent coverage to a control group of individuals (ages 26-34) unaffected by the new policy.

21 Dec 2012

Researchers describe how medical and nursing schools could help prevent potentially deadly errors

More than a decade ago, an Institute of Medicine study revealed that preventable medical errors were a leading cause of death, accounting for more fatalities than breast cancer, traffic accidents or AIDS in the United States. Today, the problem of medical errors remains and might even have escalated.

18 Dec 2012

UMHS approach to medical errors and malpractice suits could be used by hospitals nationwide: Study

The University of Michigan Health System doesn't claim to be perfect. But its response to medical errors, near-misses, unexpected clinical problems and unintended outcomes is a model for the nation that other hospitals can and should copy, according to a new paper in a prestigious health care journal.

14 Dec 2012

Roundup: NH hospital at center of hepatitis outbreak details fixes; Report finds racial gap in Colo. dental coverage; Health cuts part of Conn. budget plan

Though Exeter Hospital has fixed problems discovered after a hepatitis C outbreak last spring, federal officials say the hospital initially failed to conduct an adequate investigation. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said last week it no longer plans to terminate the hospital's Medicare funding now that multiple issues raised by inspectors have been addressed.

11 Dec 2012

Longer looks: The frustrations of academic medicine; Small business owners fear health law changes; A doctor struggles to save his mother

Like many franchisees, Robert U. Mayfield, who owns five Dairy Queens in and around Austin, Tex., is always eager to expand and - no surprise - has had his eyes on opening a sixth DQ. But he said concerns about the new federal health care law had persuaded him to hold off.

7 Dec 2012

Roundup: Fla. judge rules legislature must decide on prison care privatization; Skepticism over Ore. medical liability reform proposal

A Tallahassee judge ruled Tuesday that a legislative committee did not have the authority to approve a contract regarding prison health care services. According to Businessweek, the plan would privatize health care services in three of Florida's four prison system regions. Circuit Judge John Cooper, who made the decision, said the policy changes must be approved by the full Legislature, rather than just a panel of 14 select legislators.

6 Dec 2012

Two simple cost-effective methods can reduce expensive postoperative complications

As the nation grapples with surging health care costs, researchers at the University of Connecticut Health Center, Farmington, and Saint Francis Hospital and Medical Center, Hartford, have confirmed two simple cost-effective methods to reduce expensive postoperative complications-communications team training and a surgical checklist.

6 Dec 2012

Swedish Medical Center/First Hill named among Leapfrog Group's 2012 Top Hospitals

The Leapfrog Group's annual class of 'Top Hospitals' – just 89 from a field of nearly 1,200 – will be announced today in Baltimore, Md., and includes Swedish Medical Center/First Hill for the third year in a row. The announcement will take place at Leapfrog's Annual Meeting.

4 Dec 2012

Children's Hospital Los Angeles earns Top Hospital designation from Leapfrog Group

For the fourth consecutive year, Children's Hospital Los Angeles has earned the Top Hospital designation from The Leapfrog Group, which annually recognizes the best hospitals in the nation for providing the safest and highest quality health care services to patients. Children's Hospital Los Angeles is one of only 12 children's hospitals nationally to receive this honor and was the only children's hospital in California to earn the top award.

4 Dec 2012

The Leapfrog Group honors Northwestern Memorial and Lake Forest with 'A' Hospital Safety Score

Memorial Hospital and Northwestern Lake Forest Hospital have been selected as 2012 Top Hospitals by The Leapfrog Group, an organization that provides the only national, public comparison of hospitals across safety, quality and efficiency dimensions. Northwestern Memorial and Northwestern Lake Forest are honored among an elite group of only 92 hospitals selected out of nearly 1,200 surveyed.

4 Dec 2012

Hospital news: Mergers, acquisitions and delivery of care make news around nation

Hospitals in California, New York and across the nation deal with mergers, acquisitions, delivery of care and fines in the marketplace. In the meantime, doctors whose practices were purchased by hospital chains feel increasing pressure to meet financial goals.

4 Dec 2012

First Edition: December 3, 2012

For years, King/Drew provided emergency, trauma and inpatient care to residents from throughout South Los Angeles. After a series of medical errors resulted in patient deaths, Los Angeles County closed it in 2007. County officials promised the community a better, safer new medical center in a few years.

3 Dec 2012

The Leapfrog Group honors UCSD with two separate 'A' Hospital Safety Scores

UC San Diego Health System was honored with two separate "A" Hospital Safety Scores by The Leapfrog Group, an independent national nonprofit run by employers and other large purchasers of health benefits.

30 Nov 2012

Regenstrief Institute and Merck sign five-year collaboration agreement

The Regenstrief Institute and Merck, known as MSD outside the United States and Canada, have signed a five-year agreement to collaborate on a range of projects that will use clinical data to inform personalized delivery of health care.

9 Nov 2012

Longer looks: Searching for a dementia gene; The trouble with medical device patents; Blue dog Matheson's re-election quest

When it comes to preparing for a natural disaster like superstorm Sandy, hospitals drill for such evacuations and activate emergency command centers to manage any increase in patients. Still, events like superstorm Sandy are hard to prepare for. "It's been an unprecedented situation that has required an unprecedented response from the whole tri-state health care system," says Jim Mandler, assistant vice president for public affairs for Continnum Health Partners hospitals.

2 Nov 2012

Viewpoints: Friedman on why Democrats are really the 'pro-life' party; Myths about doctor-assisted suicide

Hard-line conservatives have gone to new extremes lately in opposing abortion. ... These are the authentic voices of an ever-more-assertive far-right Republican base that is intent on using uncompromising positions on abortion to not only unseat more centrist Republicans ... but to overturn the mainstream consensus in America on this issue.

30 Oct 2012

AACN selects 7 North Carolina hospitals for nurse leadership and innovation training program

The American Association of Critical-Care Nurses (AACN) has selected seven hospitals in central North Carolina to participate in its new hospital-based nurse leadership and innovation training program.

25 Oct 2012

Mistakes are still commonly made in prescriptions of antiretroviral medications

Research presented at IDWeek 2012- concludes that despite advances in electronic medical records, mistakes are still commonly made in the prescription of antiretroviral medications for hospitalized HIV-positive patients. At the same time, a trio of studies suggests however, that electronic records in combination with increased clinical education can help to greatly decrease medical errors.

20 Oct 2012

Viewpoints: Cancer doctors reject 'phenomenally expensive' new drug; Protecting patients' rights

At Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, we recently made a decision that should have been a no-brainer: we are not going to give a phenomenally expensive new cancer drug to our patients.

16 Oct 2012

Senate leaders working on post-election plan to avoid 'fiscal cliff'

The New York Times reports that a bipartisan group is trying to find a path to a deficit reduction deal, but Democrats and Republicans still remain far apart on details.

3 Oct 2012

Medical Errors News and Research

Research Roundup: Health law's under-26 coverage 'significantly increased' access to care; Thousands of surgical 'never events' occur each year

Researchers describe how medical and nursing schools could help prevent potentially deadly errors

UMHS approach to medical errors and malpractice suits could be used by hospitals nationwide: Study

Roundup: NH hospital at center of hepatitis outbreak details fixes; Report finds racial gap in Colo. dental coverage; Health cuts part of Conn. budget plan

Longer looks: The frustrations of academic medicine; Small business owners fear health law changes; A doctor struggles to save his mother

Roundup: Fla. judge rules legislature must decide on prison care privatization; Skepticism over Ore. medical liability reform proposal

Two simple cost-effective methods can reduce expensive postoperative complications

Swedish Medical Center/First Hill named among Leapfrog Group's 2012 Top Hospitals

Children's Hospital Los Angeles earns Top Hospital designation from Leapfrog Group

The Leapfrog Group honors Northwestern Memorial and Lake Forest with 'A' Hospital Safety Score

Hospital news: Mergers, acquisitions and delivery of care make news around nation

First Edition: December 3, 2012

The Leapfrog Group honors UCSD with two separate 'A' Hospital Safety Scores

Regenstrief Institute and Merck sign five-year collaboration agreement

Longer looks: Searching for a dementia gene; The trouble with medical device patents; Blue dog Matheson's re-election quest

Viewpoints: Friedman on why Democrats are really the 'pro-life' party; Myths about doctor-assisted suicide

AACN selects 7 North Carolina hospitals for nurse leadership and innovation training program

Mistakes are still commonly made in prescriptions of antiretroviral medications

Viewpoints: Cancer doctors reject 'phenomenally expensive' new drug; Protecting patients' rights

Senate leaders working on post-election plan to avoid 'fiscal cliff'

Improving healthcare sustainability through carbon data

Managing vibration in IVF laboratories

A New Approach to Preventing Bladder Cancer Recurrence

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