St. Louis-based Ascension closed the disparity in severe hospital-acquired pressure injuries between patients with light and dark skin tones to 0% in fiscal 2026, the health system said Aug. 11. The change followed a systemwide push to standardize skin-tone assessment…
Patient Safety & Outcomes
UNC Health Pardee in Hendersonville, N.C., has been designated as a Level III Trauma Center by the state. The three-year designation follows a 12- to 15-month trauma operational period and an on-site review by trauma experts and state evaluators, according…
Never events — the most severe, preventable harms in patient safety — are often seen as some of healthcare’s worst-case scenarios. But they also carry an overlooked distinction: They can only happen to patients who made it far enough into…
Atlanta-based Piedmont Healthcare reduced serious safety events by as much as 90% over the past decade even as it grew from five hospitals to 28, the system said Aug. 10. The organization tied the improvement to a quality and safety…
CMS found Mission Hospital in Asheville, N.C., to be operating in “substantial compliance” with agency requirements following a July 9 validation and complaint survey, according to an Aug. 3 CMS notice reviewed by Becker’s. Six things to know: 1. In…
The American Academy of Pediatrics updated its influenza guidance for the 2026-27 season, adding detailed recommendations for vaccinating immunocompromised children to align with other professional societies. The update comes as the CDC has not released flu vaccine recommendations for the…
This year, CMS has implemented eight changes to the HCAHPS survey and scoring. The changes are part of CMS’ HCAHPS 2.0 launch, which began in 2025. Last year, CMS began allowing patients to fill out the HCAHPS survey online; sunset…
HHS has started the decertification process for Network for Hope, the organ procurement organization serving Kentucky and parts of Indiana, Ohio and West Virginia, after federal reviews found ongoing patient safety failures. The decertification effort stems from independent reviews by…
About half of US hospital patients were on an antibiotic in 2023 — essentially flat from 2015 — even as nearly all hospitals now run stewardship programs, a CDC survey found. Among 151 hospitals that took part in both the…
Vermont is the best state to have a baby based on healthcare metrics, according to an Aug. 3 list from personal finance website WalletHub. The ranking was developed by comparing each state and Washington, D.C., by 31 metrics across four…