The Oklahoma state medical board last week adopted a policy meant to clarify guidelines for the practice of telemedicine. The Oklahoma Medical Board’s position statement defines a face-to-face encounter “by telemedicine,” which can include sessions with approved audio and video devices. The...
Sixty wrong-patient/wrong-site/wrong-procedure sentinel events were reported during the first half of 2013, according to the October edition of The Joint Commission Perspectives. Other sentinel events near the top of the list were unintended retention of a foreign object and delay in...
The National Practitioner Data Bank is conducting a satisfaction survey of eligible users to gauge the Data Bank’s usability, including its querying and reporting functions. The survey also seeks information on how Data Bank information is being used regarding healthcare practitioners. The...
The American Association for Accreditation of Ambulatory Surgery Facilities (AAAASF) has approved Version 14 of the AAAASF Surgical Standards. AAAASF will begin distributing Version 14 for use during self-evaluations and surveys in the first half of 2014. Version 14 does not apply to facilities...
The number of accountable care organizations (ACOs) now stands at 488, more than double the total in June 2012. With more providers looking to implement the ACO model, the Alliance for Health Reform earlier this week gathered a panel of experts to share lessons learned. During the discussion,...
