Healthcare Risk Management articles from March 2003

Healthcare Risk Management archives from March 2003

Speak my language: lax interpreting may be a root cause of medical errors: dangerous to rely on family, ad hoc translators to relay medical information.
March 1, 2003... Translating medical information for patients who don't speak English has always been a difficult issue for health care providers, but evidence is mounting to suggest that health care providers risk major lawsuits from medical errors traced to...

Checklist: these tips may help reduce your liability.(for translation services)
March 1, 2003... These tips on improving your translation services are offered by Glenn Flores, MD, director of community outcomes in the department of pediatrics at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee, and Grena Porto, RN, ARM, DFASHRM, senior...

Computer link helps with an immediate translation.(high technology can improve translation services at hospitals)
March 1, 2003... High technology can be a solution to improving your translation services. One example is Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, IL, which recently implemented a system providing audiovisual interpreting services on demand for...

Bush pushes for CA-style reform as doctors rebel.(President Bush wants significant malpractice reform, and California's laws)
March 1, 2003... Doctors went on strike recently in several states to protest the malpractice crisis, as President Bush called for significant malpractice reform that would cap damages and rein in the trial attorneys blamed for much of the problem. California's...

Uterus branding shows, risk and benefits of a videotape.(a lawsuit has been filed by a patient against a surgeon for allegedly branding his alma mater's initials on her uterus)
March 1, 2003... In a recent lawsuit, a woman accused her doctor of "branding his alma mater's initials on her uterus during surgery. A legal expert says the crux for risk managers is how the videotape of the surgery both caused the lawsuit and might end it in...

Safe practices approved to help reduce medical errors.
March 1, 2003... The National Quality Forum (NQF)announced recently that it had approved 26' safe practices" that should be universally utilized in health care to reduce the risk of adverse events. Four additional practices will continue to be evaluated and may...

Critically ill kids most likely to suffer from drug errors.
March 1, 2003... The most seriously ill children are more likely than other youngsters in the hospital to experience drug mistakes, according to new research released at the same time as new guidelines on how to avoid such errors with children. Very sick...

OR nurse group urges reporting of surgical errors.(the Association of periOperative Registered Nurses wants a national system for the reporting of medical errors involving surgical items)(Brief Article)
March 1, 2003... Recent news reports of patients who lived for months with surgical items mistakenly left in them has spurred the Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN) to urge that such incidents be reported to the national system it has set up...

CE questions.
March 1, 2003... Please review the text, answer the following questions, check your answers against the key below, and then review the materials again regarding any questions answered incorrectly. To receive credit for this activity, you must return the...

Adverse drug reaction leads to death and an $830,000 verdict in Kentucky.
March 1, 2003... News: A 59-year-old man was admitted to the hospital for elective angioplasty. Ten hours after surgery, he experienced a severe adverse reaction to anti-clotting medication and suffered intracranial bleeding. He had a seizure, went into a coma,...

Fear, anxiety, frustration, and anger on the HIPAA road: OCR should improve HIPAA responses, report says.(misunderstanding and anxiety looms over the 4/14/03 deadline for compliance with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act)
March 1, 2003... There is "an extremely high level of confusion, misunderstanding, frustration, anxiety, fear, and anger in a broad range of people and organizations as the April 14 compliance date for the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act...

HIPAA deadline looms: is your facility ready? If you're not moving, start.(advice on how to become compliant with HIPAA privacy rules)
March 1, 2003... On April 14, covered entities under HIPAA are expected to be in compliance with the new Standards for Privacy of Individually Identifiable Health Information. "This implies that you have to have trained people in what the policies are,"...

HIPAA Q & A.(a question and answer column about how to comply with the HIPAA rules)(Column)
March 1, 2003... [Editor's note: This is the first in a series of periodic columns that will address specific questions related to implementation of HIPAA. If you have questions regarding these areas or others, please send them to Russ Underwood, HIPAA...

Make these changes to avoid HIPAA violations. (Guest Column).
March 1, 2003... If you don't comply with HIPAA privacy regulations, you may face civil penalties of up to $25,000 for each requirement violated, and criminal penalties of up to $50,000 and one year in prison for obtaining or disclosing protected health...

URAC handbook explains HIPAA security rules. (Guest Column).(a review of 'HIPAA Handbook: What Your Organization Should Know About the Federal Security Rule')(Book Review)
March 1, 2003... The lack of a final HIPAA security regulation means that your organization doesn't have to provide security for your patient data, right? Wrong, according to a new handbook published by URAC. Your organization already has to protect patient...

Correction.(Correction Notice)
March 1, 2003... In the January/February issue of HIPAA Regulatory Alert, the article "How to draft documents for HIPAA implementation" incorrectly stated that "a provider with a direct treatment relationship must have patient consent in order to use or...