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NPR
Shots - Health News
Under the law, Medicare is mandated each year to punish the 25% of general care hospitals that have the highest rates of patient safety issues. The assessment is based on rates of infections, blood clots, sepsis cases, bedsores, hip fractures and other c

Several 'Best' U.S. Hospitals Penalized Over Too-High Rates Of Infection, Injury

Jan 31, 2020
Medicare is cutting payments to 786 hospitals with the highest infection and complication rates. The list includes a third of the hospitals proclaimed as the nation's "best" in one prominent ranking.
NPR
Shots - Health News
Just as sleep deprivation has been shown to impair cognition, so too has it been found to dampen empathy for others.

Opinion: Keep Limits Intact On Medical Residents' Work Hours

May 10, 2019
Caps on shift lengths for medical residents were implemented to improve patient safety. Given the effects of sleep deprivation on emotional capacity and residents' well-being, why risk longer hours?
NPR
Shots - Health News
RaDonda Vaught appears at a court hearing with her attorney, Peter Strianse, in February. Vaught, a former nurse at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, was charged with reckless homicide after a medication error killed a patient.

When A Nurse Is Prosecuted For A Fatal Medical Mistake, Does It Make Medicine Safer?

Apr 10, 2019
A nurse was charged with reckless homicide and abuse after mistakenly giving a patient a fatal dose of the wrong medicine. Patient safety experts say this may actually make hospitals less safe.
NPR
Shots - Health News
Contrast agent, a drug that enhances CT scans, is sometimes skipped because of concerns about side effects.

Are The Risks Of Drugs That Enhance Imaging Tests Overblown?

Mar 23, 2019
A contrast agent doesn't make you feel better or treat what's ailing you. But by making CT scans clearer, contrast might be crucial in helping your doctor make the right diagnosis.
NPR
Shots - Health News
Food and Drug Commissioner Scott Gottlieb tweeted Tuesday that he is ready to implement a right-to-try law "in a way that achieves Congress' intent to promote access and protect patients."

Right To Try Act Poses Big Challenge For FDA

May 24, 2018
Legislation that would give terminally ill people a direct path to get experimental treatments raises questions about how the Food and Drug Administration would safeguard patients.
KNPR
Newscast headlines

Utah Hospitals Rank Poorly In Patient Safety

Dec 22, 2016

Eight hospitals in Utah have been ranked among the nation’s worst performing for patient safety.

This week, the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) identified about 800 hospitals across the U.S. that had high rates of patient injuries.

NPR
Shots - Health News
A proposed change in work rules would let first-year residents care for patients for up to 28 hours without getting a chance to sleep.

Medical Interns Could Work Longer Without A Break Under New Rule

Nov 04, 2016
A proposed change in work rules would let first-year residents care for patients for as many as 28 hours straight, scrapping a 16-hour limit. Supporters say longer shifts would improve patient safety.
NPR
Shots - Health News
After several prominent safety problems with medical devices in hospitals emerged, the Food and Drug Administration inspected 17 hospitals across the country in late 2015 to assess their compliance with reporting regulations.

FDA Faults Hospitals For Failing To Report Safety Problems With Medical Devices

Oct 28, 2016
The Food and Drug Administration found several prominent facilities hadn't followed rules on reporting incidents in which patients died or were harmed. The problem is thought to be widespread.
NPR
The Two-Way
A new rule by an agency within the Department of Health and Human Services preserves the right of patients and families to sue nursing homes in court.

New Rule Preserves Patients' Rights To Sue Nursing Homes In Court

Sep 29, 2016
A new rule is the most significant overhaul of federal funding regulations for nursing homes in more than two decades. It also requires "nourishing, palatable" food and infection-control plans.
NPR
Shots - Health News
Dr. Lars Aanning, seen at his home outside Yankton, S.D., said he lied to protect a colleague in a malpractice case. Now, Aanning is a patient safety advocate.

Doctor Confesses: I Lied To Protect Colleague In Malpractice Suit

Sep 23, 2016
A surgeon who lied on the witness stand about his partner's skills is haunted by the deception nearly two decades later. Now retired from medicine, the regretful witness is a patient advocate.
NPR
Shots - Health News

HHS Issues New Rules To Open Up Data From Clinical Trials

Sep 16, 2016
The aim is to make clinical trial data available to volunteers and scientists, even if a drug or therapy being tested turns out to be a failure. That could help identify serious side effects.
NPR
Shots - Health News
The Clinical Center on the campus of the National Institutes of Health, in Bethesda, Md., is an internationally renowned hospital where patients are also research subjects.

NIH Halts Some Research Amid Concerns Over Contamination And Safety

Apr 19, 2016
The National Institutes of Health shut down some clinical trials and two production facilities over concerns that safety rules haven't been followed, but it says no patients appear to have been hurt.
NPR
Shots - Health News

Medicare Penalizes 758 Hospitals For Safety Incidents

Dec 10, 2015
More than half of the hospitals punished this year were also dinged in 2014. The government has used financial carrots and now sticks to improve the quality of care.
NPR
Shots - Health News

Is It Safe For Medical Residents To Work 30-Hour Shifts?

Dec 07, 2015
Young doctors being trained at dozens of hospitals around the country are being asked to work up to 30 hours straight as part of a study. Critics say the study is risky and unethical.
NPR
Shots - Health News
Michael Jarschke, who leads the Napa Chapter of the California Association of Psychiatric Technicians, has worked at Napa State Hospital for 32 years. He pushed to create a new alarm system with GPS to protect staff members.

5 Years After A Murder, Calif. Hospital Still Struggles With Violence

Oct 20, 2015
Napa State Hospital in California added safeguards to protect workers after a psychiatric technician was murdered in 2010. But violence remains a part of daily life at the facility.
NPR
Shots - Health News
Diagnosis by text or a phone call is often convenient and popular with patients. But is it good medicine?

Texas Puts Brakes On Telemedicine — And Teladoc Cries Foul

Jun 02, 2015
As consulting a doctor exclusively by phone, text or video becomes more popular, the Texas Medical Board moves to restrict these e-visits. Is the real battle over patient safety, money or turf?
NPR
Shots - Health News

Top Hospital Ratings Prove Scarce In Medicare's Latest Tally

Apr 17, 2015
Only 7 percent of the nation's hospitals assessed by Medicare were good enough to win 5-star ratings. The government used patient reviews to come up with the grades.
NPR
Shots - Health News
Will the pump talk to the computer that holds the patient's records?

Nurses Have To Translate When Medical Devices Fail To Communicate

Mar 13, 2015
Medical technology can make patient care better and more precise. But the gadgets and computers can cause trouble, too. One big problem is that most of the devices often can't talk with one another.
NPR
Shots - Health News

What's A Patient To Do When Hospital Ratings Disagree?

Mar 04, 2015
Many people check up on hospitals before they check in as patients. But there's a catch. A hospital that gets lauded by one group can be panned by another.
NPR
Shots - Health News

Alleged Patient Safety Kickbacks Lead To $1 Million Settlement

Mar 03, 2015
The Justice Department claimed patient safety celebrity Dr. Chuck Denham solicited payments from a medical products company to win a prestigious National Quality Forum endorsement for its antiseptic.
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