All Entries in the "Joint Commission" Category
Tread carefully on the new fire watch interpretation
As you may have read already, The Joint Commission has updated its approach to fire watches by stating that fire watches would generally only be necessary during unscheduled alarm or sprinkler system disruptions.
From a consultative standpoint, I advise you to [more]
Defibrillators are life support equipment, says The Joint Commission
If this ever-changing world in which we live in has got you down, you’ll be pleased to note that once again, a succulent pearl of wisdom has issued forth from The Joint Commission: What is the meaning of life (support equipment).
For some reason it appears that there has been much consternation and controversy over [more]
H1N1 pandemic will test your supply chains
Hi, it’s Scott Wallask. I read this passage in today’s Boston Globe about medical supplies to battle H1N1 swine flu:
Some hospitals said shelves usually brimming with surgical masks, used to slow the virus’ transmission, turned barren [more]
PI ’til you’re PO’d
One of the more common pushbacks I hear relative to my suggestions for improving policies, procedures, etc., is, “We’ve been doing it like this for (insert time frame here) and it’s never been a problem.”
From a safety professional standpoint, I cannot tell you how disheartening it can be to hear that. I have yet to find an organization that does not [more]
Staff must take the lead in preventing cylinders from falling
Last month, I wrote about The Joint Commission’s position on compressed gas cylinders — but wait, there’s more.
When it comes to these cylinders, the bottom line is whether your organization has eliminated the risk of cylinders falling and becoming damaged, or reduced the risk to its lowest potential.
Please remember if your staff [more]
Joint Commission scoring update effective July 1
Hi everyone, it’s Scott Wallask checking in. There are a series of EC and life safety scoring changes going into effect on July 1 that were just published by The Joint Commission.
I wrote a story about this for HCPro’s HealthLeaders Media site, which you can read for free.
The Joint Commission publishes an amended fire watch policy
Hi everyone, it’s Scott Wallask, and from what I’ve read this week, The Joint Commission’s new fire watch policy is bound to shake things up a bit.
The June issue of Joint Commission Perspectives lays out when and how the accreditor expects hospitals to institute fire watches — but in doing so, the commission seems to pull back [more]
Check out the updated FAQ about computers-on-wheels
Earlier this week, The Joint Commission updated its FAQ about on computers-on-wheels in corridors.
The last bit in the FAQ about [more]
Digging into The Joint Commission’s FAQ about compressed gas cylinders
On its FAQ Web page, The Joint Commission mentions nonflammable compressed gas cylinders as a function of ensuring that end users can identify whether a cylinder is full, partially full, or empty.
Curious thing, though — the FAQ title is “Labeling oxygen and other compressed gas cylinders,” even though there is no specific labeling requirement.
The Joint Commission is absolutely mum on [more]
It’s up to you to determine when to conduct medical equipment safety checks
As far as Joint Commission standards that address the frequency of electrical safety checks for medical devices, you will have difficulty finding any — because there are none.
The Joint Commission, under environment of care standard [more]
