Two British hospitals have introduced "talking" cardboard nurses to their reception areas as part of a project to battle infection. The life-size nurses have been placed at the front entrances of both hospitals to remind people of the importance of cleaning their hands before they enter the hospitals. The "nurses" work via an electronic motion sensor which is activated as people walk past, triggering a recorded message.
Actor Dennis Quaid testified before Congress about a near-fatal drug mix-up in which his newborn twins received 1,000 times the correct dose of the blood thinner heparin. Quaid said the experience underscores the need to hold pharmaceutical companies accountable through lawsuits. Beginning with the Bush administration, the Food and Drug Administration has stepped into suits on the side of pharmaceutical companies, arguing that federal regulation of drugs pre-empts state suits.
Sixteen hospitals are leading a new effort to reduce birth injuries. The effort is being coordinated by Premier Inc., a healthcare alliance that promotes hospital safety and quality. The 16 hospitals have committed to following a set of guidelines that are proven to reduce harm during the birthing process.
An international panel of heart specialists has recommended people with implanted heart devices receive closer follow-up care. The guidelines spell out who should do what to ensure good care, and tackles ethical dilemmas such as when to turn off a device and let a patient die. The guidelines also endorse new wireless technology that lets doctors check devices remotely while a patient is at home.
The quality of care at "safety-net" hospitals that treat poor and underserved patients is lagging well behind hospitals that do not serve these patients, according to a study. The safety net hospitals rely on state and federal funding from Medicaid and other sources, and do not have the money to improve the quality of care at the same rate that better-funded hospitals do. In the study, researchers examined data collected between 2004 and 2006 from 3,665 safety-net and non-safety-net hospitals. They found that hospitals that cater to a low percentage of Medicaid patients had significantly more improvement in quality compared with safety-net hospitals.
The Healthcare Association of New York State has received a $105,000 state grant for a program aimed at reducing hospital-acquired infections. The money will be used for The Healthcare Educational and Research Fund, which provides educational programs and monitors the systematic implementation of evidence-based control measures to reduce ventilator-associated pneumonia infections in critical care patients. HANYS was one of seven organizations to share in more than $1.2 million in funding from the state Health Department.