Most of you are well prepared for disaster response, but there’s always the unpredictable event

I really think — this being my ever so humble opinion based on my observations — that most hospitals are adequately prepared to respond to the emergencies they have identified as being the most likely to occur.

That’s not to say there are not improvement opportunities, because there will always be [more]

Poll results: At least 25% of workers won’t get H1N1 shots

If you didn’t catch our update in last week’s Hospital Safety Connection e-newsletter, I wanted to briefly mention the results of our informal H1N1 poll that we conducted on the main HCPro.com site.

In short, one in four respondents said they would not get an H1N1 swine flu shot as part of their work duties. Click here for full details on the results.

Regulatory gray areas around this series of less-than-best practices

I was asked about a clean utility room that is also an electrical storage closet, which contains electrical panels, many wires, and oxygen cylinder storage against the wires.

It sounds like the organization had to make use of the available space for its network cabling, and while this is not an optimal environment of care practice, there’s no real regulatory language that precludes it. That said, there are a couple of things I would cite as “other environmental concerns” to consider: [more]

Behavioral settings are tailor-made for risk assessments

I heard about a surveyor who correctly noted that gooseneck faucets could be considered a hanging risk for behavioral patients.

This is where the risk assessment process blooms in all its beauty. The behavioral health physical environment is chock-a-block [more]

9/16 webinar on how IC ties into employee safety

We’ve got a great Webinar coming up on Wednesday called “Developing an Effective IC Program to Ensure Employee Health and Safety,” which takes place at 1 p.m. Eastern. You can also order it on-demand and watch it at your convenience if the initial broadcast time doesn’t fit into your schedule.

Among the topics our experts will discuss include how employee health ties into:

• CDC guidelines and OSHA standards for staff member immunization
• Personal protective equipment and respiratory protection
• Screening and exposure protocols

This show is part of our series, Infection Prevention Core Training.

Think about steps to thwart not just infant abductions, but kidnappings of older kids

There is some indication that there is at least one Joint Commission surveyor who is very keen to see what processes are in place to avoid potential abductions of children in the 12+ age range (I tend to think of them as adolescents as a general descriptor).

While environment of care standard EC.02.01.01, EP 9 does specifically mention [more]

The challenges that tie healthcare facilities back to 9/11

Back in 2001, I remember talking to quite a few hospital safety officers and emergency planners about the way the world had changed after 9/11. It wasn’t just the hijacked jets in New York, Washington, and Pennsylvania — soon after, the nation was in the midst of anthrax attacks via the mail and there was also concern about potential smallpox bioterrorism.

Yet I re-read some of the articles I wrote at the time and was struck by [more]

Extra fire drill as part of The Joint Commission’s ILSMs

I fielded a question a little while back about using a fire drill as an interim life safety measure (ILSM) under Joint Commission standard LS.01.02.01 EP 11.

The actual verbiage from the pre-2009 standard was that each organization would conduct [more]

Take our poll about the H1N1 vaccine for healthcare workers

As I’m sure you’ve heard in your hospital hallways, there’s a lot of talk about the safety and effectiveness of the H1N1 swine flu vaccine.

The CDC has put healthcare workers who have contact with patients as one of the top priority groups to receive the H1N1 shots when they become available.

We’ve got a poll up on our main HCPro site asking whether you will get an H1N1 vaccine. Click here and then scroll to the bottom of the page to take the poll.

Let us know what you think, and I’ll report back on the results in a few days.

Go ahead, ask your haulers about regulated medical waste

A lot of the rules regarding regulated medical waste live at the state level, and generally the most knowledgeable folks in the food chain are the medical waste disposal people — in other words, your vendors and haulers.

My consultative advice would be [more]