According to the latest hospital safety ratings released by the Leapfrog Group, 10 hospitals in Maryland received an A grade, based on the number of errors, accidents, injuries, and infections that were reported. However, five hospitals received a D grade, 14 received a C grade, and 11 were given B grades. Fortunately, none of the » Read More

In March 2014, a Navy lieutenant who was employed as a nurse at the Naval Hospital Bremerton in Washington died during childbirth. The pregnant Naval officer went into labor, but suffered complications which caused excessive bleeding. Unfortunately, she died shortly after giving birth. The deceased’s husband, who is a former Coast Guard officer, filed a » Read More

Hospitals are constantly looking for new and innovative ways to reduce costs while improving the quality of patient care. Value-based incentive programs (VBIPs) have been used to improve quality and reduce costs by providing financial rewards to hospitals who demonstrate proven improvements, and penalties to those who do not. However, a recent study by the » Read More

When a patient is admitted to the hospital, oftentimes, they are hooked up to a range of machines that monitor heart rate, oxygen levels, and other important vital signs. Many of the medical devices used to monitor a patient’s health are equipped with alarms that will alert the healthcare provider if something is wrong. While » Read More

The Johns Hopkins Medical Centers possess a reputation for patient safety excellence. The network of medical centers within their system consists of four centers in Maryland, and two others based in Washington, D.C. and St. Petersburg, Florida. Their seemingly stellar reputation stems from the creation of a medical checklist that reportedly saved many lives. Doctors » Read More

Twice a year, the non-profit company, Leapfrog, releases its safety ratings report for hospitals across the country. The company uses a range of sources to measure safety, including the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Leapfrog Hospital Survey. While only 32 percent of the 2,600 hospitals » Read More

According to a recently published article, stroke patients who have developed an infection are more likely to be readmitted to the hospital compared to other patients. The researchers found that urinary tract infections were among the most common types of infections, but others also contributed to the fact that stroke patients have a 20 percent » Read More

In the United States alone, close to four million babies are born every year. Many women go into labor on or close to their due date and deliver their baby without any health complications. However, the childbirth process can be unpredictable, and things can go wrong, putting the health of the baby and the mother » Read More

Sepsis is an extremely dangerous, potentially life-threatening condition that claims the lives of 258,000 Americans each year. If there is a serious infection somewhere in the body, the immune system can go into overdrive trying to fight the infection. In some cases, rather than fighting the infection, the immune system releases toxic chemicals into the » Read More

According to research from the American Heart Association, heart disease is the number one cause of fatality in men and women in the United States. Unfortunately, women are less likely to survive a heart attack than men. A new study conducted by researchers at the University of Minnesota examined the health outcomes of female heart » Read More