Insights & News in Healthcare Safety

Non-medical Discharge: Navigating Legal, Regulatory, and Ethical Considerations

Hospitals may wish to discharge patients for a variety of non-medical reasons (e.g., if the patient is being violent towards staff, patients, or visitors; if the patient is exhibiting racist behavi...

Supporting Women Veterans: The Role of Healthcare Leaders

On June 12, we recognize Women Veterans Recognition Day, a date designated to mark the anniversary of the signing of the 1948 Women's Armed Services Integration Act, which allowed women the right t...

Evidence-based Strategies for Preventing CAUTIs from Indwelling Catheters

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), urinary tract infections (UTIs) are the most common healthcare-associated infection, and approximately 75% of UTIs acquired in the...

Navigating the Death of a Pediatric Patient

​An ECRI member recently asked for information regarding support for healthcare providers navigating the death of a pediatric patient. In our response, we discuss strategies and provide relevant re...

Combatting Nurse Fatigue for Improved Staff and Patient Safety

In the modern healthcare environment, healthcare workers often experience job-related fatigue, which can have a negative effect on patient and staff safety and well-being. In addition, worker fatig...

Utilizing Data from Wearable Devices

A member recently asked about liabilities associated with the utilization of data from nonprescription consumer wearable devices that track various health statuses (e.g., heart rate, blood pressure...

ECRI's Top 10 Patient Safety Concerns for 2023

Each year, ECRI publishes a list of top patient safety concerns to call attention to safety risks that need to be addressed to keep patients and staff safe. Concerns on this year’s list are heavily...

Health Technology Assessments Vital to Payers for Defensible Coverage Determinations

In today's healthcare environment, payers are under increasing pressure to make new and updated medical policy determinations as quickly and cost-effectively as possible. Health technology assessm...

Controversial New Study on Medical Masks versus N95 Respirators for COVID Prevention in Healthcare Workers

We noted with great interest the study by Loeb et al., published in the December 2022 issue of Annals of Internal Medicine, as well as a helpful commentary and various reactions to the findings. In...