Healthcare Risk Management articles from February 2005

Healthcare Risk Management archives from February 2005

'Safe passage nurse' improves patients' safety as they move through the system: designated nurse coordinates multidisciplinary care.
February 1, 2005... How would you like to increase occurrence reporting by 134% while improving patient safety and communication among your staff? If that sounds good, the Safe Passage Program, developed by Clarian Health Partners in Indianapolis, might be for...

Charity lawsuits may open the door for more scrutiny.
February 1, 2005... Not-for-profit hospitals are a natural target for allegations that they are failing to serve the indigent community, and the latest lawsuits targeting them are not likely to be the last, according to an expert in health care law. No matter...

Hospital files counterclaim, predicts lawsuits will fizzle.
February 1, 2005... Some hospitals targeted by the spate of lawsuits against charity health care providers are fighting back, and one hospital executive tells Healthcare Risk Management that he expects the legal brouhaha to die out soon without any major payouts....

JCAHO: patient-controlled analgesia overuse warning.(Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations )
February 1, 2005... Patient-controlled analgesia (PCA) is a well-accepted method of delivering pain relief, but JCAHO is warning that well-intended family members and caregivers may be putting patients at risk by becoming involved in administering patient...

On its web site, a hospital apologizes for a fatal error.
February 1, 2005... Taking the idea of full disclosure to another level, a Seattle hospital has posted a public apology to the victim of a medical error with apparently no regard to how that may affect the inevitable lawsuit from the family. Robert Caplan,...

JCAHO alters its patient safety goal requirements.(Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations )
February 1, 2005... Rent action by JCAHO of interest to risk managers: * After hosting the recent National Summit on Medical Abbreviations with several other organizations, JCAHO modified the 2005 requirements for meeting National Patient Safety Goal...

It's risky to allow patients to leave by the back door.(Reader Question)
February 1, 2005... Question: We have a physical therapy clinic that has an exit leading directly from the treatment area to the patient parking lot. Since most patients don't need to check out at the front desk before leaving, the therapists often direct them to...

Prepare for a flu season that has not hit its peak: it's not over yet!(Brief Article)
February 1, 2005... This year is a wild card, and anything still could happen. First, we had a dangerous shortage of influenza vaccine, followed by many high-risk people who couldn't get or decided to forgo immunization. Fortunately, this has been a mild flu...

CE objectives/questions.
February 1, 2005... After reading this issue of Healthcare Risk Management, the CE participant should be able to: * Describe legal, clinical, financial, and managerial issues pertinent to risk managers in health care. * Explain how these issues affect...

Two HIPAA privacy provisions 'unnecessarily burdensome': GAO report gauges provider reaction to privacy rule.
February 1, 2005... A survey of providers, health plans, patient representatives, and others conducted by Congress' General Accounting Office (GAO) found providers and health plans believe that implementation of the HIPAA privacy rule went more smoothly than...

Requirements on copying cost charges confusing: what costs are considered reasonable?
February 1, 2005... What used to be a fairly routine occurrence for many health care providers--supplying copies of patient medical records on request--is becoming a major issue under HIPAA because of questions about how much can be charged for a copy of the...

CMS issues first of seven security guidance papers: paper provides security rule overview.(Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services)
February 1, 2005... The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services MS) has issued the first in a projected series of seven papers to provide guidance for covered entities. Security 101 is an overview of the HIPAA security rule requirements and implementation and a...

Improper prescribing leads to toxicity and death: $2.2 million settlement in Missouri.
February 1, 2005... News: An elderly man diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis was prescribed methotrexate by his doctor. Although he immediately began to experience symptoms of methotrexate toxicity, the doctor failed to take his patient's complaints seriously and...

Failure to obtain informed consent: $400,000 verdict.
February 1, 2005... News: A patient successfully underwent aortic value replacement surgery; however, it had the adverse side effects of causing her to lose her sight and sustain a hand injury. Two years later, the surgery was unsuccessfully repeated and the...