Becker's Clinical Quality & Infection Control Supplement

7 Steps to Better Quality Control at Orthopedics & Spine Surgery Centers

Diagnostic and Interventional Surgical Center, the ambulatory surgery center arm of DISC Sports & Spine Center in Marina del Rey, Calif., has done over 7,000 cases since it opened its doors in 2006 and reported a zero surgical site infection rate during that time. Click to continue »

5 Key Areas CMS Looks At in ASC Surveys

This story was written by Carla Daley Shehata, RN, BSN, vice president of operations for Regent Surgical Health. Click to continue »

6 Important AAAHC Accreditation Updates to Know

As many ambulatory surgery center administrators prepare for initial or renewed ASC accreditation, two industry professionals weigh in on recent updates to AAAHC standards — and what you should know about the process. Click to continue »

4 Approaches to Implement Evidence-Based Care Practices

Larry Burnett, RN, MS, a managing director of Huron Healthcare's clinical performance improvement solution, has recommended four approaches for engaging care teams in implementing evidence-based care pathways. Click to continue »

6 Questions Hospital Leaders Should Ask When Managing Care Variation (quality)

Huron Healthcare, part of Huron Consulting Group, has shared six key questions hospital executives should ask when implementing care variation management. Click to continue »

National Association for Healthcare Quality Offers 5 Recommended Practices for Quality

The National Association for Healthcare quality has issued a call to action, urging stronger safety cultures to help healthcare professionals feel empowered and protected when reporting potential risks and adverse events. Click to continue »

Promoting Hand Hygiene Through Electronic Monitoring: Q&A With DebMed

These questions on hand hygiene compliance were answered by leaders with DebMed, part of Deb Group, LTD. Access a link to an upcoming DebMed webinar here. Click to continue »

Respecting Sterile Processing for Their Role in Patient Safety

While surgeons, operating room nurses and anesthesiologists have more visibility in providing safe and high-quality surgical care, central sterile processing staff also plays a critical role in delivering excellent patient care. Click to continue »

4 Strategies to Boost Hospitals HCAHPS Scores

Hospitals' scores on the Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems survey are becoming increasingly important for hospitals to maintain market share and avoid losing reimbursement. Click to continue »

Chuck Lauer: Greater Awareness of HAIs Has Not Translated Into Action

It's not easy to reach a consensus on a lot of issues, but I think all of us agree that healthcare associated infections are a very serious threat. Click to continue »

Maintaining Quality at Pain Centers: Q&A With Dr. Edward Tavel of Pain Specialists of Charleston

On Oct. 6, 2012, the New England Compounding Center issued a voluntary recall of all products after it distributed a contaminated steroid injection to several practices, resulting in numerous cases of meningitis. Click to continue »

Leveraging Technology to Reduce Readmissions: 3 Things to Know

Readmissions are becoming a top concern of hospital leaders, not only because readmission rates reflect quality of care and population health, but also because they have significant financial implications for hospitals. Click to continue »

Why Hospitals Can't Settle for "Later:" Tracking Data in Real Time to Reduce Readmissions

Demand for instant gratification — receiving responses to questions, gaining access to products and resolving discomfort immediately — is often viewed as a fault of today's society. Click to continue »

5 Points on Preventing Injection Errors in the Surgical Site

This is the second article in a series of five articles focused on the most pressing issues in patient safety and infection control, published during International Infection Control Week. Click to continue »

Inside the Medicare Accreditation Process: 5 Crucial Points From ASC Inspector Dr. David Watts

David C. Watts, MD, the Vice President of Education for the American Association for Accreditation of Ambulatory Surgery Facilities (AAAASF), discusses five key factors in the process of obtaining and maintaining Medicare accreditation in ambulatory surgery centers. Click to continue »

CMS' Systems Improvement Agreement: A Last Chance Alternative to Medicare Termination?

In the past, when CMS conducted a survey and unfavorable findings led to a determination of immediate jeopardy, healthcare organizations had very little choice (prepare an acceptable corrective action plan or risk Medicare decertification) and very little time (23 days) to correct the deficiencies. Click to continue »

5 Points to Achieve 95% Hand Hygiene Compliance

This is the first article in a series of five articles focused on the most pressing issues in patient safety and infection control, published during International Infection Control Week. The series is sponsored by X-Static. Click to continue »