By Diane M. Goodman, APRN, BC, MSN-C, CCRN, CNRN A group of nurses had gathered to inhale a quick lunch. The topic for the day was medication safety. We reviewed a recent article (posted online) that discussed the importance of minimizing interruptions to nursing workflow, particularly during medication administration. In the posted scenario, a ...

I grew up in Kansas City, on both the Kansas and Missouri sides of the state line and smack dab in the middle of Tornado Alley. One of my earliest memories is of my dad, my three older brothers and me scrambling to get out of our station wagon and getting down into a ditch along the side of a highway to try and protect us from a twister ...

I've worked at three different hospitals over the past five years. Each one has had a different process of dealing with Medication Reconciliation, but I believe my current facility has created the best idea of all: A Medication Reconciliation Technician role.  Her primary responsibility is to interview patients to obtain the most ...

According to one Fox affiliate contributor, Ben and Jerry’s has a special nap room for employees. If you get too tuckered making Chunkey Monkey, you can bag a few zees. The National Sleep Foundation reports that sixteen percent of employers have similar napping rooms. One sleep expert comments, “Just one 26-minute power nap can increase your ...

Repetitive motion injuries are commonly caused by cumulative trauma to musculoskeletal joints such as thumbs, elbows, and shoulders. These have always been common in workplaces but there is greater awareness during these long days of people sitting at computer terminals. Hours of restrictive movement using the same muscles that involve ...

There’s a scene in the 60s-era AMC series “Mad Men” that involves a pregnant woman smoking and drinking while her friend’s child runs around with a dry cleaning bag over her head. All of this happens in the space of about a minute, and there are so many things done wrong during that time that, by today’s standards, you can’t help but wonder ...

There’s a scene in the 60s-era AMC series “Mad Men” that involves a pregnant woman smoking and drinking while her friend’s child runs around with a dry cleaning bag over her head. All of this happens in the space of about a minute, and there are so many things done wrong during that time that, by today’s standards, you can’t help but wonder ...

When we renovated our lab design, moving walls, equipment, and refrigerators, one of the techs joked the newly opened space made it “walker ready.” “We aren’t getting any younger,” she said. That seems to be a theme these days. I’m not sure we’ll be working with walkers -- I hope not -- but ergonomics and exhaustion seem to bedevil us ...

New tweet list! Boston bombing provider response; TEDMED; Epic, CommonWell and what really happened at HIMSS; and what successful people do on the weekends. Get daily tweets by following us @ExecInsight. FierceHealthIT In wake of Boston bombing, technology, social media enables rapid provider response http://t.co/XfRhHhSdlU John Moore May get ...

A common task we are expected to perform is checking expiration dates on reagents, controls, and other dated materials. Boxes are crowded with different languages, vials are smaller, and eyesight fades with age. I remember vividly the moment when I couldn’t immediately adjust between a crossword puzzle and the wall clock. What if we miss a ...