Update Your Important Medication Lists

Prioritize medication safety by updating important drug lists based on ISMP’s latest update for high-alert medications, look-alike/sound-alike drugs, and more.

Borescope Cameras: Uses and Maintenance

It is important that staff are educated, trained, and competent on the use of the borescope. Improper processing can compromise the health, care, and safety of the patient.

Key CMS Survey Topics for 2022

Key CMS Survey Topics for 2022

New and revised survey topics from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) took effect in January 2022. You should expect survey teams to include these topics during the review of your facility.

Mock Surveys: Determining Your Regulatory Alignment

Have you considered the benefits a mock survey can provide to help your team identify risk areas and opportunities for improvement? A mock survey is an excellent way to check your alignment with regulatory requirements and ensure your survey readiness.

Data Rich . . . Information Poor

Throughout our travels across the country, we encounter organizations that struggle with the management of their data. We believe that CMS and the accrediting agency, The Joint Commission, may also be seeing the same thing.

Heads Up! Medication or Not?

Many organizations may be leaving these opportunities for improvement on the table.  Did you know that any toothpaste that contains sodium fluoride contains a National Drug Code and is classified as a medication?  We recently verified this with The Joint Commission Standards Interpretation Group.  Their team advised this would be determined by how they are […]

Titration Orders: The Key To Safe Medication Management

Titrating intravenous medications is the process of adjusting medication dosage for maximum benefit without inducing adverse side effects. It can be a fine line to walk, but when staff follow clearly defined parameters through well-crafted titration orders, it can be performed with a high degree of safety and ensure that your practice is aligned with […]

Prepare Your Healthcare Laundry Department For Inspection

How often do we go to the linen closet and say to ourselves, “is this linen safe to put on my patient’s bed?” As a nurse for over 40 years, I do not think that I have ever asked myself that question. I was happy that the linen was there and that I could use […]