Checklists

Making a Better Medical Safety Checklist

In the wake of Johns Hopkins’ success in virtually eliminating intensive-care unit bloodstream infections via a simple five-step checklist, the safety scientist who developed and popularized the tool warns medical colleagues that they are no panacea.“Checklists ...More
February 15, 2010
Posted in News
Safety Checklist Continues to Keep Hospital Infections in Check

The state of Michigan, which used a five-step checklist developed at Johns Hopkins to virtually eliminate bloodstream infections in its hospitals' intensive care units, has been able to keep the number of these common, costly and potentially lethal infections near zero ...More
February 4, 2010
Posted in News, Disinfection & Sterilization, Hand Hygiene, PPE & Standard Precautions
Many Hospitals Fail to Reduce Infection Rates Despite Checklists

Far too many hospitals fail to lower the rate of deadly central-line bloodstream infections despite the availability of a simple life-saving checklist proven to prevent hospital-acquired infections, says a new investigative article in the March issue of Consumer Reports. ...More
February 2, 2010
Posted in News
Improved Patient Safety and Reduced Infection Rates: An Imperative in 2010

2010 may be known as the year of renewed patient safety efforts, at least if Peter Pronovost, MD, PhD, FCCM, professor at the John Hopkins University School of Medicine, has anything to say about it. He is part of the Quality and Safety Research Group at Johns Hopkins, a ...More
December 18, 2009
Posted in Articles
In the Aftermath of 2008 CMS Rule, Hospitals Seek to Prevent Infections, Retain Reimbursement

It has been about 14 months since a new directive from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) went into effect Oct. 1, 2008, essentially declaring that Medicare will no longer reimburse hospitals for extra costs related to certain infections acquired during a ...More
December 18, 2009
Posted in Articles
Preventing Medical Errors: Avoid Blame Game, but Punish Habitual Offenders

Patient safety experts at Johns Hopkins and elsewhere are taking their prescription for avoiding medical errors in hospital care one step beyond already successful “no fault, no blame” approaches, calling now for penalties for doctors and nurses who fail to ...More
October 1, 2009
Posted in News, Hand Hygiene
Hospital Checklists Need a Reality Check, According to New Study

A team of sociologists and healthcare researchers is calling for greater understanding of how hospital and medical checklists can be used to improve patient safety. Furthermore, say the authors of a commentary in the journal The Lancet, widespread deployment of medical ...More
August 20, 2009
Posted in News
HAI Prevention Project Among New HHS “Success Story” Reports

HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius today released the first in a series of healthcare “success story” reports that document innovative programs and initiatives that can serve as models for a reformed American healthcare system. The inaugural report highlights the ...More
July 13, 2009
Posted in News
Have We Progressed in Patient Safety?

In mid-December, the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued two reports on hospital adverse events and state reporting systems that endeavored to explore the critical factors involved. Just a week later, ...More
January 29, 2009
Posted in Articles
Little Progress Made in Patient Safety Despite IOM’s Call to Action

Despite increased emphasis on patient safety, little progress has been made in making hospitals safer, says Johns Hopkins critical care specialist Peter Pronovost, MD, PhD, in an article in the Dec. 24 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.He identifies ...More
December 29, 2008
Posted in News