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October 2009 |
AORN
New AORN member log-in process
AORN is in the process of upgrading several Web site features. With this upgrade, members’ AORN website USERNAMES changed to your e-mail address as of Monday, Oct. 19 (passwords did not change). With the change, members do not need to contact AORN unless they need to update their e-mail address with the organization.
Username = your email address
Password (no change) = your member number found on membership card (if you changed or self-selected your password, please use the password you designated)
Members can update their profile with AORN by calling customer service at 800-755-2676, Ext. 1 or e-mail custserv@aorn.org with your preferred email address.
FLU
New York mandates flu vaccines for healthcare workers
New York lawmakers in August made vaccination for seasonal and H1N1 flu mandatory for state healthcare employees. The ruling gives state healthcare employees until November 30 to either get vaccinated or lose their jobs.
The ruling has drawn some criticism in October, including that of the New York Civil Liberties Union, which is among critics decrying the mandate as a violation of workers’ rights to choose health care, according to Kaiser Health News. Further, several individual state healthcare employees are suing New York for a violation of civil rights, WCAX reports. Taking criticism a step further, Bloomberg reports a group of physicians and employees are suing to have the FDA void its approval of the H1N1 vaccine.
MINIMALLY INVASIVE SURGERY
Study hints at benefits and detriments for prostate cancer patients who choose minimally invasive surgery
Citing a recent Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) study, The New York Times reports prostate cancer patients who choose to undergo minimally invasive surgery instead of more complicated procedures to remove the prostate are not as likely to experience immediate complications but had more risk of long-term effects.
Complications such as pneumonia were less likely in patients who chose minimally invasive prostate surgery. Meanwhile long-term effects, such as impotence and incontinence, were reported at a higher rate. The JAMA study is said to be one of the largest on the subject to date.
HEALTH IT
Health IT workforce shortage possible
As the use of electronic health records increases, hospitals and healthcare systems could face a shortage in health information technology (IT) employees, HealthLeaders Magazine reports.
Those in the field of health IT will have a hybrid range of skills, from a clinical understanding to technical prowess, making the position harder to fill in the short term, HealthLeaders writes. While some hospitals remain understaffed in terms of health IT professionals, the story indicates a number of clinical employees look forward to increased use of technology.
PATIENT SAFETY
ANA launches new Web site on patient safety
The American Nurses Association (ANA) launched a new Web site in September dedicated to safe patient handling.
The site, anasafepatienthandling.org/, encourages RNs to submit stories about why safe patient handling is important to them, and also includes a form for writing to one’s member of Congress about the potential hazards of heavy lifting. Another form on the Web site allows nurses to enter friends’ contact information as another means to spread the message.
The ANA advocates the use of assistive lifting equipment and devices to reduce the risks associated with heavy lifting.
INFECTION PREVENTION
APIC mulls name change
The Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) has proposed changing its name to the Association for the Prevention of Infection.
In a frequently asked questions document for its members, APIC says the name change would better reflect the association’s mission and purpose. Though the name itself could change, the association plans on keeping the APIC acronym. The association says its constituency of 12,000 infection preventionists will continue to be its primary focus.
More information is available at www.apic.org.
HEALTH IT
AHA urges change to proposed meaningful use standards
The American Hospital Association (AHA) expressed concerns that recommendations proposed by the Health Information Technology Standards Committee would change the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act’s privacy and security rules “in inappropriate and unworkable ways.”
The AHA addressed the standards committee at a recent meeting. Among its concerns the AHA told the committee that “meaningful use” should primarily be defined by the ability of the IT system to help hospitals and doctors improve patient care, yet many of the proposed quality metrics do not meet this criterion. The panel is one of two federal committees advising the Department of Health and Human Services on how to define “meaningful use” of electronic health records, which will determine which hospitals and physicians are eligible for more than $17 billion in health IT funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
Read more news in AORN Management Connections.
Read more news in AORN Connections.