The fall mortality rate among older adults in the U.S. has more than tripled over the last 30 years, despite steadily decreasing in other high-income countries, according to an opinion paper published Aug. 8 in JAMA Health Forum.  One possible…

Officials with the Florida Department of Health anticipate new rules to end school-based vaccine requirements to take effect in 90 days, beginning with chickenpox and immunizations for other diseases.  On Sept. 3, the state’s surgeon general, Joseph Ladapo, MD, PhD,…

To increase patient safety, Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare takes staff on “field trips” to learn from other high-risk industries, such as chemical manufacturing, according to an American Hospital Association podcast published Sept. 3.  Randy Fagin, MD, chief quality officer of…

York, Pa.-based WellSpan Health is enhancing security at its facility, including creating a private police force. “With this initiative, WellSpan Health is continuing to take a proactive approach to enhancing our security efforts and the safety of our patients, their…

Nurse scientists are a rare but growing role in hospitals that address not just research, but operational and patient care pain points. Nurse scientists, also referred to as nurse researchers, are nurses who have pursued a PhD and conduct research.…

States are beginning to take vaccine policies and recommendations into their own hands amid turmoil at the CDC, which could lead to a patchwork of varying approaches across the country and raise logistical questions for multi-state health systems.  This year,…

UNC Health is aiming to build a new pipeline of OB-GYNs equipped not only to practice in rural communities, but to take on leadership roles where they can address longstanding disparities in maternal care access and outcomes. The Chapel Hill,…

The FDA is reversing years of federal guidance on vaccine coadministration, signaling a broader crackdown on giving patients multiple vaccines at the same time, The Washington Post reported Sept. 3.  Here are four updates: 

Baltimore-based Johns Hopkins Medicine researchers found there is no standard definition for what constitutes contamination in a blood culture, which could lead to more false positives and CLABSI infections. “We found variation in how hospitals define blood culture contamination, and…

A new study commissioned by the American Hospital Association has found patients treated in hospital outpatient departments typically are sicker and require more medically complex treatment than those seen in independent physician offices.  The study, published in September and conducted…