After a Tennessee nurse killed a patient because of a drug error, the companies behind hospital medication cabinets said they’d make the devices safer. But did they?
Among the 764 hospitals hit with a 1% reduction in Medicare payments this year for having high numbers of patient infections and avoidable complications are more than three dozen that Medicare also ranks as among the best in the country.
Policies mandating company approval before talking publicly about conditions in hospitals have been a source of conflict over the past year, as physicians, nurses and other health workers have been disciplined for speaking or posting about what they view as dangerous covid-19 safety precautions. The appeals court’s decision could mean that hospitals — and other employers — will need to revise their policies.
The first confirmed U.S. case of SARS-CoV-2 being transmitted through an organ transplant has prompted calls for updated transplant protocols and additional testing of samples from deep within donor lungs.
More than two dozen people who have received the new covid vaccines in U.S. hospitals and health centers suffered anaphylaxis, a potentially fatal allergic reaction. While such severe reactions are rare, experts warn that the drugstores and drive-thru clinics considered integral to the vaccine rollout must be prepared.
The federal government expects vaccinations to be available to everyone who wants them by summer — though glitches are inevitable. If enough of us get vaccinated, we could wave goodbye to the pandemic in 2021.
Paid even less than low-wage doctors’ scribes in the United States, remote note takers in India gain a foothold in a rapidly expanding industry.
Data and safety monitoring boards work under a cloak of secrecy meant to prevent undue influence by stakeholders, such as companies or the government. In the Trump era, some worry the anonymity could actually invite it.
The nation’s top infectious disease official is confident that an independent panel will base vaccine approval on science, not politics.
Hundreds of thousands of health care workers go into homes to provide important services for seniors and disabled people. But with the rising concerns about the danger of the coronavirus pandemic, especially for older people, these health workers could be endangering their patients and themselves.