Editor's Note Postoperative readmissions occurred in more than 1 in 10 patients, in this study, with considerable variation across specialties. The majority of variation was attributable to patient-related factors (82.8%); surgical specialty accounted for 14.5% of the variability, and individual surgeon factors accounted for 2.8%. After adjusting for patient and…
Editor's Note The release of 2002 guidelines on preoperative testing by the American Society of Anesthesiologists, American College of Cardiology, and American Heart Association was associated with a reduction in routine ECG testing but not of x-rays, hematocrit, urinalysis, or cardiac stress testing, in this study. Because routine preoperative testing…
Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration on August 5 categorized the recall of 6,912 units of Medtronic Cardiovascular Surgery’s EnVeo R loading system as Class I, the most serious. The loading system is used with the CoreValve Evolut R replacement heart valve. The recall was issued over concerns about…
Editor's Note The US Senate on August 5 passed the Electronic Health Fairness Act of 2015 (S 1347), which was heavily promoted by the Ambulatory Surgery Center Association. The legislation protects physicians practicing in ASCs from Medicare meaningful use penalties until a certified electronic health record technology is available for…
Editor's Note The Joint Commission has updated its “Ambulatory Care Accreditation Survey Activity Guide for Health Care Organizations,” and has made it available on the Joint Commission Connect extranet site. Among the updates: Survey document list: A new item has been added requesting identification of all locations where high-level disinfection…
Editor's Note Despite reprocessing in accordance with US guidelines, viable microbes and residual contamination persisted on gastrointestinal endoscopes after each reprocessing step, in this study, suggesting current guidelines are not sufficient to ensure successful decontamination. Investigators observed all reprocessing activities, using a checklist to ensure that protocols were performed in…
Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration on August 5 issued a Safety Communication on serious adverse events linked to left ventricular assist devices (LVADs). Two implantable LVADs are approved by the FDA (HeartMate II by Thoratec Corporation and HeartWare HVAD by HeartWare Inc), and serious events have been associated…
Editor's Note Like healthcare facilities across the country, those in Oregon are struggling with the growing problem of smartphones in the OR. This article and audio includes interviews OR personnel, residents, medical students, managers, administrators, and patient safety regulators on the issue of smartphones in the OR. The executive director…
Editor's Note When surgeons listen to their preferred music, they’re more efficient at closing incisions, and their technique improves, this study finds. Researchers asked 15 plastic surgery residents at the University of Texas to perform layered closures on pigs’ feet. Half the resident worked in a silent OR and half…
Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration on August 4 released a Safety Communication that contains supplemental measures to enhance duodenoscope reprocessing. The measures emerged from an expert panel meeting earlier this year. In addition to following manufacturer reprocessing instructions, the FDA says facilities can use one or more of…
