Today’s Top Story
CPOE systems may fail to flag many medication errors.
A report from The Leapfrog Group finds that some computerized physician order entry (CPOE) systems still fail to flag many potential medication errors. The researchers analyzed data from the 2015 Leapfrog Hospital Survey and found that, among hospitals with CPOE systems, 39 percent of potentially harmful drug orders weren’t flagged by the system. Overall, 96 percent of hospitals report adoption of a CPOE system—an increase from 33 percent in 2010. In addition, 64 percent of reporting hospitals fully met Leapfrog’s CPOE standard for CPOE implementation and quality. To meet that standard, a hospital must place at least 75 percent of medication orders through a CPOE system and demonstrate that its system alerts physicians to at least 50 percent of common, serious prescribing errors.
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Other News
2. Study: Increased body mass and sagittal vertical axis linked to greater risk of revision following surgical treatment for spinal deformity.
A study published in the April 6 issue of The Journal of Bone & Joint Surgery suggests that patients with greater preoperative sagittal vertical axis and higher body mass may be at increased risk of revision following surgery to treat adult spinal deformity. The authors reviewed information on 243 adult patients who underwent a surgical procedure for adult spinal deformity, 40 (16.5 percent) of whom underwent a revision surgical procedure. At 2-year follow-up, they found that positive predictors for revision included higher total body mass and greater preoperative sagittal vertical axis. Factors associated with lower risk of revision included use of bone morphogenetic protein-2 and greater diameter rods. The authors note that screw or cage-related implant complications were the most common indications for revision, followed by proximal junctional kyphosis and rod failure.
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3. CMS updates electronic clinical quality measures for 2017 reporting period.
Government Health IT reports that the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has updated its electronic clinical quality measures (eCQMs) for eligible hospitals and eligible professionals to report 2017 quality data to the agency. Overall, CMS has updated 64 measures for eligible professionals and 29 measures for hospitals during the 2017 performance period.
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View the complete CMS eCQMs…
4. Physician compensation report finds orthopaedists on top; women physicians still paid less than men.
Medscape has released its 2016 Physician Compensation Report, which finds orthopaedics—at a mean $443,000 per year—to be the highest reimbursed specialty. The report also notes that female physicians earn about 24 percent less than their male peers, with a greater disparity among specialists (25 percent) than primary care physicians (15 percent). Across all specialties, orthopaedics has the second-lowest percentage of women, who account for 9 percent of all orthopaedists. The researchers surveyed nearly 19,200 physicians in more than 26 specialties regarding compensation, hours worked per week, time spent with each patient, most rewarding part of their jobs, changes to their practice resulting from healthcare reform, and more.
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Read the complete report…
5. Study: Suicide risk screening in ED may help identify at-risk patients.
Findings published in the April issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine suggest that universal suicide risk screening in the emergency department (ED) may be associated with a nearly twofold increase in risk detection. The research team reviewed data on 236,791 ED visit records covering eight EDs and three time phases: treatment as usual (phase 1), universal screening (phase 2), and universal screening + intervention (phase 3). Across the three phases, the research team found that documented screenings increased from 26 percent in phase 1 to 84 percent in phase 3, and detection rose from 2.9 percent to 5.7 percent.
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6. Louisiana.
The Eunice News reports that the Louisiana State Senate has approved a bill that, if enacted, would allow patients to visit a physical therapist without a physician prescription. Supporters of the bill say that it will increase patient access. Critics argue that it may reduce patient safety, because physical therapists are not specifically trained to diagnose injuries.
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7. AAOS updates privacy policy.
AAOS has updated its privacy policy to clarify that a member may unsubscribe to receipt of AAOS emails, with the exception of those emails related to membership matters or business transactions with AAOS, such as member dues statements, purchase receipts, confirmation of event registration, and the annual ballot to select the AAOS Nominating Committee and vote on bylaws and resolutions. For more information, please view the complete privacy policy, under “How Does AAOS Use Personal Information (Email Addresses) to Communicate with Fellows, Members and Others?”
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8. Call for volunteers: AHRQ National Advisory Council for Healthcare Research and Quality.
AAOS seeks to nominate members to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) National Advisory Council for Healthcare Research and Quality. The council advises the secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the director of AHRQ to improve the quality, safety, efficiency, and effectiveness of health care. AHRQ is seeking individuals with a variety of backgrounds. Applicants for this position must be active fellows, candidate members, candidate members osteopathic, candidate member applicants for fellowship, or candidate member applicants for fellowship osteopathic. In addition, all applicants must provide the following: an online AAOS CAP application, a current curriculum vitae, a 100-word biosketch, and a letter of interest highlighting their expertise in the subject area and a statement that they are able to participate in full capacity. All supporting materials must be submitted by Sunday, May 15, 2016 at 11:59 p.m. CT, to Kyle Shah at: shah@aaos.org.
Learn more and submit your application…(member login required)
