ED Management articles from February 2002

ED Management archives from February 2002

Joint Commission zeroes in on disaster plans: is yours up to par?(Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations)
February 1, 2002... As if the events of Sept. 11 weren't enough to convince you to fine-tune your disaster plan, there is now another compelling reason. A new report issued by the Oakbrook Terrace, IL-based Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare...

New group targets disaster planning.(Partnership for Community Safety: Strengthening America's Readiness)
February 1, 2002... Would you like to improve your disaster plan and obtain needed equipment? A new coalition was formed to help you do just that, with the goal of making sure that all communities are ready for nuclear, biological, and chemical terrorism and other...

Nine ways to use handheld computers.(for emergency medical service management)
February 1, 2002... When a 40-year-old man came to the ED at Tallahassee (FL) Memorial Healthcare in ventricular tachycardia, he was stabilized with anti-arrhythmics. "His wife told me he was on a chemotherapy drug for colon cancer," recalls Terry Schneider, RN,...

CMS says you'll get paid for observation.(Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services adds ambulatory payment classification code for observation services for chest pain centers)
February 1, 2002... Has your observation unit shut its doors in response to lack of reimbursement under ambulatory payment classifications (APCs)? If so, you may want to rethink that decision. The Baltimore-based Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has...

ED diversion rates high throughout the calendar.
February 1, 2002... If you are experiencing all-time high diversion rates, you're not alone. A new study shows that ED diversions are now a year-round problem. The Washington, DC-based Center for Studying Health System Change conducted site visits at 12 EDs...

EMTALA Q & A.(Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act)
February 1, 2002... [Editor's Note: This column is part of an ongoing series that will address reader questions about the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA). If you have a question you'd like answered, contact Staci Kusterbeck, Editor, ED...

Effect of an emergency department (ED) managed acute care unit on ED overcrowding and emergency medical services division. (Journal Review).
February 1, 2002... Kelen GD, Scheulen JJ, Hill PM. Effect of an emergency department (ED) managed acute care unit on ED overcrowding and emergency medical services division. Acad Emerg Med 2001; 8:1,095-1,100. An acute care unit managed by the ED can...

CE/CME questions.(continuing medical education questions)
February 1, 2002... 25. Which of the following is required by new disaster planning standards from the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations? A. performing a hazard vulnerability analysis B. having mass decontamination shelters C....

Ease of access to deadly chemicals may be the greatest threat to hospital readiness: how close is your hospital to a railroad track?
February 1, 2002... Though biological agents have dominated recent terrorism discussions, ease of access to deadly chemicals may make them a greater threat to hospital readiness, experts emphasized recently at the University of Georgia in Athens. "Eighty new...

Excerpt: American Hospital Association Chemical and Bioterrorism Preparedness Checklist.
February 1, 2002... Pharmaceuticals and equipment: * Has your facility/system assessed its pharmaceutical inventory to determine whether it could support the treatment of and provide prophylaxis for mass numbers of patients exposed to biological or...