In October, the PPAHS celebrated it’s 5th anniversary. In addition to building around the growing body of knowledge regarding accounting for OSA in patients receiving opioids, the PPAHS also announced a new campaign targeting VTE in orthopedic patients. Continue reading “Top 10 Patient Safety Must Reads – October 2016”
Tag: Patient Safety
Patient Safety Weekly Must Reads (October 21, 2016)
This week in patient safety news, we featured a guest post article on pre-op screening and assessment for OSA. We also found some great articles addressing the ICU, the opioid crisis, and the latest in wearable monitor studies. Continue reading “Patient Safety Weekly Must Reads (October 21, 2016)”
New PPAHS Campaign Targeting Orthopedic Venous Thromboembolism
PPAHS will be beginning a new #patientsafety campaign to develop practical solutions to help assess and prevent venous thromboembolism (VTE) in patients undergoing orthopedic procedures, particularly total knee and hip replacement. More commonly known as blood clots, VTE consists of both deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolisms (PE) .
In the past, we have focused on the issue of VTE regarding maternal patients and stroke patients. In collaboration with panels of international health experts, PPAHS has developed the OB VTE Safety Recommendations and the Stroke VTE Safety Recommendations (both of which are free resources on our website). Members of the panel included:
- Atul Gawande, MD, MPH (Brigham and Women’s Hospital)
- Peter J. Pronovost, MD, PhD, FCCM (Johns Hopkins Medicine)
- Mark Alberts, MD, FAHA (Southwestern Medical Center)
- Irene Katzan, MD, MS (Cleveland Clinic)
- William M. Callaghan, MD, MPH (CDC)
- Frank Federico, RPh (Patient Safety Advisory Group, The Joint Commission)
- Mary D’Alton, MD (Columbia University Medical Center)
According to the CDC, VTE is estimated to affect 900,000 Americans annually. It is a preventable, hospital-acquired condition that is responsible for 100,000 deaths each year. The US Department of Health & Human Services (HHS) has also issued a statement identifying venous thromboembolism as the third most prevalent factor accounting for readmission 30-days after surgery (6.3%).
Hip and knee replacement operations are among the most commonly performed procedures in the U.S. About 1 million of these procedures are performed each year (for more on prevalence, see the study by Hilal Maradit-Kremers, MD, MSc et al, “Prevalence of Total Hip (THA) and Total Knee (TKA) Arthroplasty in the United States”). The 30-day readmission rate following hip and knee replacement is 4.3% and 3.9% respectively, with the readmission rate rising to 7.8% 90-days after surgery.
Join us in our fight to prevent orthopedic venous thromboembolism (VTE).
Over the next few months, we will be putting together an expert patient safety panel on orthopedic VTE to advise and help answer healthcare reporters’ questions, looking for interviewees for Patient Safety Podcasts (such as the series created in collaboration with the Society of Hospital Medicine), and for guest contributions to our blog.
Patient Safety Weekly Must Reads – October 14, 2016
This week from PPAHS we created a two-part article series examining patient monitoring strategies. We also found 2 insightful articles adding to our knowledge of the opioid crisis, and a spotlight on alarm fatigue. Continue reading “Patient Safety Weekly Must Reads – October 14, 2016”
PPAHS to Present at ACI Annual Advanced Forum on Medical Liability, Claims, Coverage, and Risk Management
The Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety (PPAHS) will be presenting at the American Conference Institute’s 2nd Annual Advanced Forum on Medical Liability, Claims, Coverage, and Risk Management in New York City. The 2-day conference, running from October 27 to 28, will bring together professionals from government, healthcare, risk management, and legal fields to discuss the latest trends and issues in today’s fast-paced medical liability landscape.
Michael Wong, JD, PPAHS executive director, will convene a panel titled “New Claims Trends Related to the U.S. Pain Crisis: Taking a Look at the Recent Prescription Opioid Abuse Epidemic and Its Impact on a New Wave of Med Mal Insurance Claims”. He will be joined by Linda Van Dillen, CompAlliance Managed Care; Michael D. Anderson, Sr. Claims Examiner & Risk Specialist Medical Insurance Exchange of California, Medical underwriters of California; and Keri Marmorek, Specialty Lines, Beazley USA. The panel will occur on day two of the conference, October 28, 2016. Continue reading “PPAHS to Present at ACI Annual Advanced Forum on Medical Liability, Claims, Coverage, and Risk Management”
Patient Safety Weekly Must Reads (October 7, 2016)
This week from PPAHS and around the web, we celebrate our 5th anniversary with some sharable tips for improving #patientsafety. We’ve also found 2 great studies and an interesting infographic about the opioid epidemic.
Continue reading “Patient Safety Weekly Must Reads (October 7, 2016)”
3 Limitations to the Use of Pulse Oximetry
In PPAHS’ latest podcast, we spoke with Thomas W. Frederickson, MD, FACP, SFHM, MBA – lead author of the Society of Hospital Medicine RADEO guide (“Reducing Adverse Drug Events Related to Opioids”). The RADEO guide is a comprehensive clinician manual created with the aim to decrease opioid-related adverse events in an inpatient setting. Continue reading “3 Limitations to the Use of Pulse Oximetry”
PPAHS Commemorates 5th Anniversary with 5 Tips for Patient Safety
By Sean Power
Community Manager, Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety
Earlier this year, we marked five years since the founding of the Physician-Patient Alliance for Health & Safety (PPAHS) with five tips for patient safety. We’ve turned them into animated GIFs to give them further attention.
Continue reading “PPAHS Commemorates 5th Anniversary with 5 Tips for Patient Safety”
Top 10 Patient Safety Must Reads – September 2016
As we flip our calendars to October, here’s a roundup of PPAH’s top posts and tweets from last month. Continue reading “Top 10 Patient Safety Must Reads – September 2016”
Patient Safety Weekly Must Reads (September 2, 2016)
For this week’s weekly must-reads, we’re focusing on the topic of sepsis for National Sepsis Awareness Month. According to the Mayo Clinic:
Sepsis occurs when chemicals released into the bloodstream to fight the infection trigger inflammatory responses throughout the body. This inflammation can trigger a cascade of changes that can damage multiple organ systems, causing them to fail.
A recent Vital Signs Report issued by the CDC finds that sepsis begins outside of the hospital in nearly 80% of patients.
Additionally, 7 in 10 patients with had recently used health care services or had chronic diseases requiring frequent medical care. The report continues with 5 key steps clinicians can take to prevent sepsis from occurring.
Continue reading “Patient Safety Weekly Must Reads (September 2, 2016)”