Nearly 40% of adults living in rural areas have turned to emergency departments for care that could have been handled in a primary care setting, pointing to persistent issues rural residents face when trying to access routine healthcare services, according…

The Joint Commission rolled out significant changes in 2025, including plans to cut accreditation standards in half, a new nurse staffing performance requirement and updates to its hospital survey process. Here are 21 actions and updates from the accrediting body…

As signs point to a more-severe-than-normal flu season this year, hospitals might see more congestion among patients and in physical capacity. Several variables are intensifying this outlook as a new variant emerges, inoculation rates fall and measles outbreaks grow.  1.…

Bethlehem, Pa.-based St. Luke’s University Health Network is pausing labor and delivery services at its Grand View Hospital in Sellersville, Pa., due to “unanticipated staffing shortages.” The maternity service pause takes effect Dec. 1, according to a post on St.…

Influenza activity remains low but is increasing across the U.S., according to the CDC’s latest FluView report.  The agency updated data on flu trends Nov. 14, offering the first national snapshot of respiratory virus activity since September. The update follows…

Risk-adjusted in-hospital mortality is once again improving at U.S. hospitals, even as they care for more complex, high-acuity patients after the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a study published Nov. 12 in JAMA Network Open. The study, conducted by the American…

UChicago Medicine has opened the first clinic of its kind in Chicago, and one of only a few nationwide, focused on preconception and pregnancy care for patients with Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis. The clinic brings together gastroenterologists and maternal-fetal…

For the fourth straight year, the U.S. has received a “D+” grade for its preterm birth rate of 10.4%, underscoring longstanding gaps in access to high-quality maternity care and widening disparities in outcomes, according to the March of Dimes annual…

A Washington state resident has contracted a bird flu strain previously only found in animals, health officials confirmed Nov. 14.  The individual has been hospitalized since early November with influenza H5N5, an avian influenza strain never before reported in humans,…

Becker’s has compiled a list of the hospitals with a CMS five-star rating for care transitions. CMS’ “Patient survey (HCAHPS)-Hospital” database listed hospital ratings based on the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems survey. This is a national,…