Over three-fourths of patients with Clostridium difficile receive opioids while hospitalized — but these painkillers increase the risk for severe disease, longer hospitalization and higher readmission rates, according to research published in Gastroenterology.  By Megan Knowles - 6/5/18

For healthcare professionals, ensuring medical devices are clean, functional and stored in a sterile environment is crucial for keeping patients and staff safe from harmful bacteria.  By Megan Knowles - 6/5/18

More than 30 physicians have left Batson Children's Hospital, part of Jackson-based University of Mississippi Medical Center, in recent years, including several pediatricians who are now working for a new local competitor. This move has prompted litigation, which calls into question the physicians' motives for breaking away from the hospital, according to the Clarion Ledger.  By Ayla Ellison - 6/5/18

The Joint Commission published a safety advisory to help healthcare facilities continue operations during disasters.  By Anuja Vaidya - 6/4/18

In a study, published in JAMA Network Open, researchers compared the proportion of hospitals requiring healthcare personnel to receive annual influenza vaccination between 2013 and 2017.  By Anuja Vaidya - 6/4/18

A more open and egalitarian culture among hospital staff can help patients have better outcomes, surgeon and columnist Pauline W. Chen, MD, argues in The New York Times.  By Megan Knowles - 6/4/18

Although patients with a primary mental health condition make up about 10 percent of pediatric hospitalizations, there is little research exploring care quality for these patients in hospital settings, prompting researchers to develop measures to assess it in emergency departments and inpatient settings.  By Megan Knowles - 6/4/18

Chipotle is showing its appreciation for nurses this week by offering the clinicians buy one, get one free meals June 5.  By Mackenzie Bean - 6/4/18

Baylor St. Luke's Medical Center in Houston, part of Englewood, Colo.-based Catholic Health Initiatives, put its heart transplant program on a 14-day inactive status June 1, according to ProPublica.  By Ayla Ellison - 6/4/18

Pharmacist interventions at Philadelphia-based Einstein Medical Center cut the hospital's 30-day readmission rate by more than half for traditional Medicare patients, according to a study published in the American Journal of Health-System Pharmacy.  By Megan Knowles - 6/1/18

A study, published in JAMA Network Open, examined early antibiotic use among premature infants in the U.S.  By Anuja Vaidya - 6/1/18

Immunosuppressed patients with sepsis may face a greater risk of mortality if they are cared for in a hospital that treats a small number of these patients, according to research published in the Annals of the American Thoracic Society.  By Megan Knowles - 6/1/18

CMS rolled out its Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program in 2012, transforming hospital readmissions into a widely accepted measure of hospitals' care quality among payers and other policymakers.  By Mackenzie Bean - 6/1/18

Premier is expanding an existing partnership with Merck to address Clostridium difficile infections in hospitals.  By Mackenzie Bean - 6/1/18

A study, published in the Journal of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases, tested if a 48-hour automatic stop order during neonatal intensive care unit admissions would decrease antibiotic use.  By Anuja Vaidya - 5/31/18

Patient safety issues at Birmingham, Ala.-based Brookwood Baptist Medical Center, a nurse accused of infecting patients with hepatitis C at Puyallup, Wash.-based MultiCare Good Samaritan Hospital, and dirty surgical instruments at Denver-based Porter Adventist Hospital most captured readers' attention in May.  By Mackenzie Bean - 5/31/18

Vestagen Protective Technologies, a developer of healthcare worker uniforms and scrubs, received FDA clearance as a Class II medical device for its Vestex apparel — the first daily-wear scrubs to receive this designation.  By Megan Knowles - 5/31/18

A study involving data from over 3 million patients admitted for sepsis in 1,000 U.S. hospitals revealed overweight or obese patients were more likely to survive the infection than normal weight patients, according to research from the European Association for the Study of Obesity.  By Megan Knowles - 5/31/18

New York state's proposal to implement mandated nurse-to-patient staffing ratios aims to protect patients from harm, but these rigid rules may take the state backward on patient safety progress, Bea Grause, RN, and president of the Healthcare Association of New York State, argues in the Times Union.  By Megan Knowles - 5/31/18

A revised emergency response system in Missouri that directs how responders care for serious heart attack patients is ensuring they receive treatment at the best-equipped facility — which isn't always the closest hospital, KBIA reports.  By Megan Knowles - 5/31/18