Healthcare Risk Management articles from February 2006

Healthcare Risk Management archives from February 2006

Condition H phone line provides last chance to prevent serious errors.
February 1, 2006... Condition H phone line provides last chance to prevent serious errors Family or patient can make emergency call if no one will listen The idea of a Code Blue is well ingrained in hospitals. When the designated team hears that page for...

Response team always on call for Condition H.
February 1, 2006... Response team always on call for Condition H This description of the Condition H system comes from Tamra Merryman, RN, MSN, FACHE, vice president of the Center for Quality Improvement and Innovation for the University of Pittsburgh Medical...

Death of young girl prompts Condition H program.
February 1, 2006... Death of young girl prompts Condition H program Condition H was prompted by the experience of Sorrel King, whose daughter Josie died in 2001 at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore due to medical errors. Josie was admitted to Johns...

Level of harm not factor when deciding to punish.(Editorial)
February 1, 2006... Level of harm not factor when deciding to punish (Editor's note: This month's Healthcare Risk Management includes the second of a three-part series on the "just-culture" approach to improving patient safety. Last month's issue included...

3 types of misbehavior determine when to punish.
February 1, 2006... 3 types of misbehavior determine when to punish Under a just culture, employee misbehavior can be categorized in these three general ways, says Geri Amori, PhD, ARM, FASHRM, a consultant with The Risk Management & Patient Safety Institute...

Recruit staff from all over to keep you informed.
February 1, 2006... Recruit staff from all over to keep you informed Every risk manager thinks the job is too big for one person, especially as health systems keep heaping on more and more responsibility, so maybe you shouldn't try to do it alone. A better...

Use variety of ways to educate staff on issues.
February 1, 2006... Use variety of ways to educate staff on issues When educating front line staff members, it is best to use a combination of methods, says Denise C. Myers, RN, MS, CNAA, CPHRM, director of risk management at Monongalia Health System in...

'Risk management hero' award prompts staff.
February 1, 2006... 'Risk management hero' award prompts staff Staff respond best to positive feedback and to seeing that their participation results in a meaningful change in the workplace, says Denise C. Myers, RN, MS, CNAA, CPHRM, director of risk...

To manage aggression, give staff right skills.
February 1, 2006... To manage aggression, give staff right skills Most aggressive behavior in a health care setting can be controlled before it turns violent if you know the right strategies to use, says Steve Wilder, CHSP, EMT-P, a security consultant with...

6 steps from calm to violent behavior.
February 1, 2006... 6 steps from calm to violent behavior Risk managers should encourage health care staff to think of a six-step aggression continuum, suggests Steve Wilder, CHSP, EMT-P, a security consultant with Sorenson, Wilder & Associates in Bradley,...

CE Objectives/Questions.
February 1, 2006... CE Objectives 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 management in health care. *Explain how...

Legal Review and Commentary: Refusal to administer epidural anesthesia leads to $200,000 CA settlement.
February 1, 2006... Legal Review and Commentary Refusal to administer epidural anesthesia leads to $200,000 CA settlement By Blake Delaney, Buchanan Ingersoll PC, Tampa, FL News: A pregnant woman in labor was admitted to the hospital. In agony due to...

Legal Review and Commentary: Traction during birth causes partial paralysis.
February 1, 2006... Legal Review and Commentary Traction during birth causes partial paralysis $900,000 verdict issued in Ohio News: An obstetrician encountered difficulty in delivering a baby because the baby's shoulders had become stuck. After...

HIPAA Regulatory Alert: Survey: Americans worried about health info privacy.
February 1, 2006... HIPAA Regulatory Alert Survey: Americans worried about health info privacy Most have favorable view of health information technology A survey from the California Health Care Foundation finds that despite new federal protection, 67%...

HIPAA Regulatory Alert: AHA wants contingency period for attachment rule.
February 1, 2006... HIPAA Regulatory Alert AHA wants contingency period for attachment rule AHA warns standard should have strict limits The American Hospital Association (AHA) has told the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) that hospitals...

HIPAA Regulatory Alert: Court rejects privacy suit related to HIPAA.
February 1, 2006... HIPAA Regulatory Alert Court rejects privacy suit related to HIPAA Decision reinforces status quo A federal appeals court has rejected a challenge by patient advocacy groups to a rule promulgated under HIPAA that eased a prior...

HIPAA Regulatory Alert: CMS: PHI can be disclosed for payment purposes.
February 1, 2006... HIPAA Regulatory Alert CMS: PHI can be disclosed for payment purposes 'Payment' includes determining eligibility The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) says a state Medicaid agency and Medicare Advantage plan may share...

HIPAA Regulatory Alert: EPIC warns about DTC marketing databases.
February 1, 2006... HIPAA Regulatory Alert EPIC warns about DTC marketing databases Concern over targeting vulnerable groups The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) West Coast Office has told the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) it is...