Category: Patient Safety

Thank You to All of the Volunteers at the Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety!

Thank You to All of the Volunteers at the Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety!

By Michael Wong, JD (Founder & Executive Director, Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety)

Recently an Associated Press article’s headline caught my attention – “Nonprofits Scramble for Help Amid Dearth of Volunteers”. According to that article, getting volunteer help at nonprofits has become much more difficult since the COVID pandemic:

As pandemic-related government aid programs end and inflation rises, nonprofits of all kinds are looking everywhere and trying everything to get volunteers. According to a recent U.S. Census Bureau and AmeriCorps survey, formal volunteer participation was 23.2 percent, dropping 7 percentage points from 2019 to 2021 — the largest decrease the survey has recorded since a version of it started in 2002.

It’s reached the point where the lack of volunteers strains the safety net that nonprofits provide to many of society’s most vulnerable.

“This is a wake-up call for the social sector, which depends on volunteers, especially as needs for services remain high,” said Michael D. Smith, CEO of AmeriCorps, which has opened its yearly grant program to award $8 million to help nonprofits recruit and retain volunteers.

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The Importance of Infection Control in the Healthcare Setting: Tips for Medical Professionals

The Importance of Infection Control in the Healthcare Setting: Tips for Medical Professionals

Editor’s note: This article is an opinion article written by Kelly Koeppel who is an author, editor, and digital marketing specialist. She is also an editor of Aging.com that submitted this article.

By Kelly Koeppel 

Every year, millions of people are affected by hospital-acquired infections. These infections can have serious, sometimes fatal consequences for patients in the healthcare setting. Infection control plays an essential role in reducing the spread of these infections and keeping patients safe. In this article, we’ll explore the importance of infection control in the healthcare setting and discuss tips for medical professionals to prevent the spread of infection. From standard precautions and protective equipment to best practices for handwashing and screening patients, we’ll cover all you need to know about infection control in healthcare facilities. So let’s get started – it could be a matter of life or death!

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New Healthcare Accreditation Sets National Standard for Respiratory Care of Patients

The Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety (PPAHS) is pleased to announce the availability of accreditation for healthcare facilities that meet the Enhanced Respiratory Care Standards of Care.

The Enhanced Respiratory Care Standards of Care are supported and endorsed by the American Association for Respiratory Care. Carl Hinkson, MS, RRT-NPS, ACCS, FAARC (President, American Association for Respiratory Care) writes:

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You Are Invited to the 4th World Sepsis Congress

By Michael Wong, JD (Founder & Executive Director, Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety)

Invitation to World Sepsis Congress

On behalf of the Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety, I invite you to participate in the upcoming 4th World Sepsis Congress, hosted by the Global Sepsis Alliance. This free online congress will take place on April 25 and 26, 2023, and will feature over 85 experts speaking on all aspects of sepsis, including the latest research, treatment options, and best practices for sepsis prevention and management.

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Improving Patient Safety Means Fixing the System, Creating a Just Culture, and Not Blaming the Individual: Celebrating National Patient Safety Awareness Week 2023

By Michael Wong, JD (Founder & Executive Director, Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety)

National Patient Safety Awareness Week Recognizes that Systemic Errors are Not Personal Errors

When I introduce myself as an advocate trying to improve patient safety, I often get asked whether this means that I go after “bad” doctors and nurses. To put this question in a legal perspective, I’m being asked whether the “bad” doctor or nurse was negligent and has committed medical malpractice. 

This is a good question, particularly for me, as I am a lawyer and the question of medical malpractice is a legal one.

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Nurses are a Cornerstone to Patient Safety

By Michael Wong, JD (Founder & Executive Director, Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety)

Our healthcare system is not safe without nurses.

The COVID pandemic underscored the need for nurses. Reporting for the Kaiser Family Foundation, Nancy Ochieng, Priya Chidambaram, and MaryBeth Musumeci write:

The disproportionate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on nursing facility residents and staff has brought increased attention to long-standing workforce issues that can affect care quality and safety, such as staffing shortages and high turnover rates. 

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How is Patient Safety After COVID? Putting 2022 in Perspective

By Michael Wong, JD (Founder & Executive Director, Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety)

Beyond COVID is a Trifecta of Respiratory Viruses 

Just when I thought that we could all let down our guard when out in public, a trifecta of respiratory viruses has descended upon us – COVID, flu, and RSV (respiratory syncytial virus). Reports CNN:

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Has WellCare Put Profits Before Patients?

By Michael Wong, JD (Founder & Executive Director, Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety) 

This is the question that I recently asked myself – “Has WellCare Put Profits Before Patients?”

In a letter to Ken Yamaguchi, MD, MBA (Executive Vice President, Chief Medical Officer WellCare Prescription Insurance, Inc.), the Partnership to Advance Cardiovascular Health (together with a coalition of concerned organizations, including the Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety) ask Dr. Yamaguchi about a pricing decision WellCare made for seniors that will increase the price of a drug by five times what they had previously paid:

recent formulary change that will drastically increase the price of apixaban for Medicare Part D WellCare participants. By placing apixaban on a higher formulary tier, medically fragile seniors will pay five times as much for their life-saving direct oral anticoagulant (DOAC).

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The Need for Better Opioid Management

By Michael Wong, JD (Founder & Executive Director, Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety)

Opioids Can be Deadly

To say that opioids can kill is perhaps to overstate the obvious. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, overdose deaths involving any opioid have steadily risen from 2010 to the present:

“Opioid-involved overdose deaths rose from 21,088 in 2010 to 47,600 in 2017 and remained steady in 2018 with 46,802 deaths. This was followed by a significant increase through 2020 to 68,630 overdose deaths.”  

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