A fire occurred in a hospital room at UPMC East Jan. 29 after a "patient may have attempted to light a cigarette while on oxygen," a hospital spokesperson told Becker's Jan. 30. 

A patient incurred minor injuries at Portland, Ore.-based OHSU Hospital after a fire broke out in an operating room in Demember, a spokesperson confirmed to Becker's in a Jan. 26 statement. The incident prompted a CMS investigation and a corrective plan from the hospital. The news was first reported by NBC affiliate KGW8. 

A team of 25 medical professionals at Fort Worth, Texas-based Cook Children's Medical Center performed the hospital's first separation procedure for conjoined twin sisters on Jan. 23. The 11-hour surgery required months of planning and several simulation surgeries, the hospital said in a news release. 

New research focusing on improving a standard treatment for septic shock has provided clarity around something that has not been well understood in the past: How to best increase blood pressure during an episode of septic shock.

Strengthening primary care systems directly reduces hospitalizations — even during a large-scale health event like a pandemic — a new study, published Jan. 21 in the Annals of Family Medicine, revealed.

Recipients of the 2022 John M. Eisenberg Patient Safety and Quality Awards, which spotlight novel healthcare, were announced Jan. 24 by The Joint Commission and National Quality Forum. 

Adolescents between 11 and 20 years of age make up around 20 percent of pediatric hospital admissions in the U.S. and on top of that, 20 percent of children under 18 also are said to have a special healthcare need, which the American Academy of Pediatrics defines as "having or being at increased risk for chronic physical, developmental, behavioral or emotional conditions."

Patients who experience long COVID-19 are at higher risk for pulmonary, diabetes, neurological and mental health encounters six months after the onset of initial infection, a study published Jan. 18 has found.

Adults over 50 who contract respiratory syncytial virus are at a more serious risk for long-term health effects, according to a study published in JAMA Jan. 20, led by Mayo Clinic physicians Young Juhn, MD, Chung Wi, MD, and Paul Takahashi, MD.

National Institutes of Health researchers found a correlation between viral infections, including influenza, and neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson's, Alzheimer's and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Science reported Jan. 19.

Many hospital employees are unable to identify the meaning of emergency codes, which could hinder an urgent response to incidents, according to a study published in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health.

The Joint Commission published two new alerts on Jan. 17 to reduce morbidity and mortality in pregnant and postpartum patients: a sentinel alert on eliminating racial and ethnic disparities, and a safety advisory on mental health conditions as the leading cause of pregnancy-related deaths. 

An international analysis found pregnant people with COVID-19 have a seven times higher risk of dying and greater risk of being admitted to an intensive care unit, needing a ventilator or developing pneumonia, The Washington Post reported Jan. 16.

Silverdale, Wash.-based St. Michael Medical Center — which gained media attention after a nurse called 911 from its overcrowded, short-staffed emergency department — has been accredited by The Joint Commission after a preliminary denial.

A new study led by researchers at Baltimore-based Johns Hopkins University suggests the rise in home healthcare services could come with dangerous consequences: an increase in central line-associated bloodstream infections, or CLABSIs. 

Despite decades of safety work, adverse events are still common in Massachusetts hospitals and may occur in about one-fourth of admissions, according to a study published Jan. 12 in The New England Journal of Medicine.

A record 42,887 organ transplants were performed in the U.S. last year, up 3.7 percent from 2021, according to preliminary data the United Network for Organ Sharing shared Jan. 10. 

NYC Health + Hospitals introduced a culturally diverse, plant-based dinner menu as its primary meal option for inpatients. The initiative builds on the hospital system's "Meatless Monday" program and its successful launch last summer of a plant-based primary lunch menu, according to a Jan. 9 release.

State health officials are investigating Cleveland Clinic in the wake of sexual assault allegations involving a former physician.  

A retroactive study found multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children was more common and more severe than previously reported.