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Category Archives: Patient Safety
The Joint Commission Reported Transfusion-Related Sentinel Events
Last fall The Joint Commission (TJC) published sentinel event data from 2004 through the first 3 quarters of 2011.1 While TJC cautions that this data is not epidemiologically meaningful because the events are for the most part voluntarily self-reported and … Continue reading
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Untangling transfusion, patient safety, and biologic product deviations
by Dr. Carolyn Burns, Medical Director, Transfusion Services, Strategic Healthcare Group LLC The July supplement to Transfusion, the Journal of Blood Services Management, contains an excellent and quite provocative article surrounding the knowledge of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) … Continue reading
Nursing: The Art and Science of Safe Transfusion
In honor of National Nurses Week Strategic Healthcare Group would like to recognize nursing’s vital role in blood management and transfusion safety.
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Improving Blood Transfusion Consent
Some time ago my delightful 80+ year-old grandmother was diagnosed with a GI bleed that led to hospitalization and multiple transfusions. As I am the only nurse in the family, she made a point to tell me that she needed blood … Continue reading
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Code Red: Labor and Delivery
As an anesthesiologist, I have always said that obstetric anesthesia is the best of times and the worst of times. It often seems that pregnant women are happier to see me than to see their obstetrician, because I am the … Continue reading
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Wrong Patient – Wrong Unit: Preventing Transfusion Errors
Previous newsletter articles have discussed the importance of appropriate transfusion decisions as a critical element of transfusion safety, as well as the role of bedside nursing as vigilant advocates during the transfusion administration process. This month’s article focuses on the … Continue reading
Nurses at the Heart of Transfusion Safety
This month as we celebrated Nurse’s Week I hope you were all able to reflect on the many contributions that the profession of nursing has made in healthcare. More nursing programs than ever before are embracing evidence-based care models, developing … Continue reading
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Preparing for the “Perfect Storm” of Transfusion Related Medical-Legal Risks
There are a number of provocative risk management issues related to transfusions that are at the forefront of medicine today. Approximately 29 million blood components are transfused each year in the United States, and that number is increasing annually. There … Continue reading
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Hospital’s May Now Be Liable For Infections
A recent provocative op-ed piece, published in the Wall Street Journal, describes a successful lawsuit against a surgeon and hospital for an infection acquired during hospitalization.
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