Healthcare Risk Management articles from October 2002

Healthcare Risk Management archives from October 2002

HIPAA rule finalized to reduce worst of consent burden, prevent marketing use; as work begins on compliance, many providers are way behind.(Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act)
October 1, 2002... Some of the worst nightmares embedded in the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) were removed from the final version of the rule, but there still is a great deal to be done if you are to make the compliance deadline. ...

Sentinel events now linked to nursing shortage.
October 1, 2002... New information shows that the nursing shortage is responsible for a quarter of sentinel events and poses a major risk to patient safety. Now the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations says the time has come to act....

Creative solution allows trauma center to reopen.(University of Nevada Medical Center in Las Vegas)
October 1, 2002... A unique solution allowed a Nevada trauma center to reopen 10 days after it closed because liability concerns forced almost all of its orthopedic surgeons to quit treating patients. The experience shows just how hard the country's liability...

HHS calls for federal action to stem malpractice crisis.
October 1, 2002... The malpractice crisis is so bad that the federal government should take action to rein in the trial lawyers and others who abuse the system, according to a new report from Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy G. Thompson. His report calls...

Doc suspended for leaving patient in OR to go to bank.(David Arndt)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2002... A Massachusetts doctor has been suspended for leaving a patient on the operating table so he could rush to the bank and deposit a paycheck. The state board of medicine suspended David Arndt, MD, an orthopedic surgeon, saying he posed "an...

Newest patient safety goals require immediate action.
October 1, 2002... Confusion in identifying patients, miscommunication among caregivers, wrong-site surgery, infusion pumps, medication mix-ups, and clinical alarm systems are the focus of the National Patient Safety Goals for 2003 set by the Joint Commission on...

Physician surveys could be used in malpractice cases.
October 1, 2002... Attorneys commonly hire experts to provide testimony about whether the way a physician cared for a patient was negligent or met customary care standards, but too often that testimony of expert witnesses may be biased or uninformed. New research...

Jury awards $2.2 million for shoulder dystocia case.
October 1, 2002... A Berks County, PA, jury awarded an infant and his parents $2,289,856 against the Reading Hospital and Medical Center and Fredericka Heller, MD, in a medical malpractice case involving issues surrounding the labor and delivery of the baby. ...

Hospital fined, live liver transplants banned.(Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2002... Serious safety violations in the live liver transplant program at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City warrant an indefinite ban on the procedure and $66,000 in fines, according to Antonia C. Novello, MD, New York state health...

Audio conference clarifies final EMTALA regulations.(Emergency Treatment and Active Labor Act)(Brief Article)
October 1, 2002... The final version of the recently proposed changes to the Emergency Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA) is expected to become effective on Oct. 1. Issues in the final regulations could include changes to physician on-call requirements, "comes to...

Brain damage leads to partial paralysis and a $3.25 million New York settlement.
October 1, 2002... News: A patient suffered a grand mal seizure, and CAT scans indicated the cause as an arachnoid cyst. The attending neurosurgeon recommended surgery to drain the cyst, relieving the pressure and seizures. The patient and his wife were given an...

Heart attack and triage: $1.25 million FL settlement.
October 1, 2002... News: In a hospital emergency department (ED), a 42-year-old insulin-dependent diabetic gave a triage nurse his personal and family history of cardiac disease, and reported the classic symptoms of pending myocardial infarction. The triage nurse...

Audio conference clarifies final EMTALA regulations.(Emergency Treatment and Active Labor Act )(Brief Article)
October 1, 2002... The final version of the recently proposed changes to the Emergency Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA) is expected to become effective on Oct. 1. Issues in the final regulations could include changes to physician on-call requirements, "comes to...

Closer link made between nursing shortage, safety: comprehensive study, JCAHO panel say lives may be in danger.(Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations)
October 1, 2002... Ever since the nursing shortage came to the fore in health care circles, concerns have been raised about its possible impact on patient safety. But even experts have not been able to agree as to whether the evidence of such a linkage was...

Joint Commission issues patient safety goals; goals will show up in surveys.(Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations )
October 1, 2002... The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations (JCAHO) in Oakbrook Terrace, IL, has for the first time issued a set of national patient safety goals, for the year 2003. The goals will be incorporated into JCAHO's survey and...