Hospitals

Plumbing In Hospitals And Nursing Homes Can Spread Legionnaires' Disease

3:54pm June 06, 2017

by Rob Stein

The CDC says health care facilities such as nursing homes and hospitals need to work harder to prevent contamination with the bacterium that causes the potentially life-threatening form of pneumonia.

A 4-year-old regulation in New York state requires doctors and hospitals to treat sepsis using a protocol that some researchers now question.

Are State Rules For Treating Sepsis Really Saving Lives?

5:14pm May 30, 2017

by Richard Harris

Some states dictate how doctors must treat this life-threatening reaction to infection, and early intervention is helping. But scientific evidence may be changing too rapidly for the rules to keep up.

Keyshla Rivera smiles at her newborn son Jesus as registered nurse Christine Weick demonstrates a baby box before her discharge from Temple University Hospital in Philadelphia in 2016. All mothers who deliver at the hospital receive a box, which functions

Health & Safety

Face-To-Face Sleep Education Plus 'Baby Boxes' Reduces Bed Sharing

5:39pm May 22, 2017

by Maureen Pao

The two-pronged approach to promoting safe sleep led to a 25 percent drop in the risky practice of bed sharing with babies in the first eight days of life, a study found. But more research is needed.

Hospital-acquired infections are a big risk in health care, especially for older or seriously ill patients.

Medicare Didn't Investigate Suspicious Reports Of Hospital Infections

2:11pm May 09, 2017

by Christina Jewett

The inspector general at Health and Human Services says Medicare should have done an in-depth review of suspicious reports from hospitals to keep them from covering up problems with infections.

A public restroom on the platform of the Central Square MBTA station in Cambridge, Mass., which people have used as a place for getting high.

Public Restrooms Become Ground Zero In The Opioid Epidemic

5:34pm May 08, 2017

by Martha Bebinger

People often turn to public restrooms as a place to get high on opioids. It has led some establishments to close their facilities, while others are training employees to help people who overdose.

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Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore opened a six-bed urgent care center next to its infusion center a couple of years ago. Of the patients who land there, about 80 percent are discharged home afterward, rather than needing admission to the hospital.

Urgent Care Services For Cancer Patients Offer A Gentler ER Alternative

12:15pm May 03, 2017

by Michelle Andrews

Some hospitals and oncology practices are setting up urgent care sites tailored to the needs of cancer patients, to help keep them out of the emergency room when complications or side effects arise.

On August 8, 2016, a suicide bomber killed 74 people and wounded 112 others at a government-run hospital in Quetta, Pakistan.

Report: Health Workers Attacked In 23 Countries Last Year

7:28am May 03, 2017

by Jason Beaubien

Syria has seen the most attacks but it is far from the only country where assaults take place.

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Pharmaceutical companies send "detailers" to hospitals to persuade doctors to prescribe their medications.

Doctors Prescribe More Generics When Drug Reps Are Kept At Bay

2:53pm May 02, 2017

by Charles Ornstein

Doctors were more likely to choose generic drugs over pricier brand names when teaching hospitals limited access by pharmaceutical sales representatives, a study finds.

Kurt Hinrichs and his wife Alice in 2015, less than a year after Kurt had a stroke. He recovered after doctors removed the clot that was blocking blood from flowing to part of his brain.

A Lazarus Patient And The Limits Of A Lifesaving Stroke Procedure

11:58am May 01, 2017

by Irina Zhorov

About 800,000 people have strokes each year in the U.S. Most are caused by clots that block blood to the brain. In some cases, doctors can remove the clot using a device that looks like a fishing net.

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At Gerald Chinchar's home in San Diego, Calif., Nurse Sheri Juan (right) checks his arm for edema that might be a sign that his congestive heart failure is getting worse.

For Some, Pre-Hospice Care Can Be A Good Alternative To Hospitals

5:00am April 28, 2017

by Anna Gorman

Through home visits, very ill people get help with pain, stress and symptoms. Medical centers, initially skeptical, now embrace the program because it helps patients and makes financial sense.