As of Oct. 19, flu activity in the U.S. is down 66 percent compared to last year, marking a more gradual start to flu season that is closer to the pre-pandemic norm, according to new data from Walgreens' Flu Index.

In 2021, Oregon Health & Sciences University in Portland created the intake hospitalist role, a dedicated position to oversee patient transfers. In the years since, the academic health center has seen patient safety and physician experience improvements, according to a case study published Oct. 18 in NEJM Catalyst.

Several reports about successful pig organ transplant procedures have emerged in 2023, continuing to lay the foundation for eventual human clinical trials and possibly a future in which xenotransplants become the norm for patients in need of a vital organ. 

An analysis of Glassdoor reviews from current and former nurses revealed there are four key factors most influential in shaping nurses' overall job satisfaction: compensation, workload, toxic culture and organizational support. 

Patients — especially those living in poverty — see better surgical outcomes when treated at a hospital ranked by U.S. News & World Report, according to a recent study in the American Journal of Surgery. 

Primary care providers are an important factor in improving patient outcomes and reducing healthcare spending, but the system is showing cracks, The Washington Post reported Oct. 17.

Researchers at Nashville, Tenn.-based Vanderbilt University Medical Center developed an artificial intelligence model to identify pediatric patients who are at high risk of developing blood clots. While the model was shown to be accurate in identifying those at highest risk, physicians were reluctant to follow the accompanying recommendation, according to findings published Oct. 13 in JAMA Network Open. 

The Joint Commission recently updated its 20-year-old guidance on preventing surgical fires and burns, the organization said Oct. 18. 

Two former employees of Saint Luke's Hospital of Kansas City (Mo.) allege the hospital disregarded concerns of rusted and broken equipment, the use of homemade medical instruments and a pest problem, The Kansas City Star reported Oct. 18. 

Intensive care registered nurses are the highest-paid travel nurse specialty, an Indeed report found.

Eligible nurses can now become certified in burn nursing through the Board of Certification for Emergency Nursing. 

An inmate escaped from Raleigh, N.C.-based WakeMed Oct. 17 while still wearing handcuffs, WRAL News reported.

The spread of mosquito-transmitted viruses is accelerating in the Southern U.S., stirring concerns about the potential return of yellow fever, two infectious disease experts wrote in an Oct. 14 article for The New England Journal of Medicine.

A man was found dead by suicide after he sneaked a gun into H. John Heinz III VA Medical Center in O'Hara, Pa., Trib Live reported Oct. 16.

Remnants of the virus that causes COVID-19 may linger in the gut, ultimately causing a reduction in circulating levels of serotonin. This may explain a number of long COVID-19 symptoms, such as brain fog and memory problems, according to new research from scientists at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.

What are the tasks only a nurse manager can do? That is the question Keck Hospital of USC in Los Angeles set out to answer when it had all nurse managers and assistant nurse managers meet with the chief nursing officer to list everything they are responsible for on a given day. 

New York City Health + Hospitals plans to cut 1,500 contract registered nurse positions by the second half of 2025.

Last week, 1,127 patients with laboratory-confirmed flu cases were admitted to a hospital, according to CDC data ending Oct. 7.

A monkey in a clinical trial has survived two years with a genetically modified pig kidney. Now the study's success is moving the needle toward gaining FDA approval to begin similar clinical trials in humans, CNN reported Oct. 12. 

Following the August wildfires that decimated parts of Maui, the state's department of health issued a new warning Oct. 15 urging the public residents and visitors to avoid contact with toxic ash remnants.