NEWS BRIEFS
NEWS BRIEFS
Research center offers standards guide
ECRI, a nonprofit health services research agency in Plymouth Meeting, PA, recently released its 1999 Healthcare Standards Directory. The directory provides information on where to find specific technical standards, clinical practice guidelines, position statements, and technology assessments, as well as laws and regulations.
The 1999 edition includes more than 5,000 new documents, including those from Europe, Australia, and other countries. In addition to the directory, purchasers receive unlimited free searches of the Healthcare Standards database, which is updated daily as new standards become available. Also included with the directory is a quarterly newsletter, Healthcare Standards Update, which informs purchasers of new and revised standards throughout the year.
The directory costs $395. For more information, contact: ECRI, 5200 Butler Pike, Plymouth Meeting, PA 19462-1298. Telephone: (610) 825-6000, Ext. 373. Fax: (610) 834-1275.
Study shows new regimen cuts CHF mortality by 27%
A new study claims that a drug regimen of Aldactone, combined with standard regimens featuring ACE inhibitors, can reduce mortality by 27% in patients with congestive heart failure (CHF).
Researchers from the University of Michigan Medical School in Ann Arbor presented the study — called RALES, or Randomized Aldactone Evaluation Study — on Nov. 11, 1998, at the American Heart Association Meeting in Dallas.
According to the lead researcher, Bertram Pitt, MD, the RALES study also revealed a 22% decrease in nonfatal hospitalizations among patients using the combined regimens.
Aldactone, known by the generic name spiro nolactone, is a pharmacologic antagonist of aldo sterone receptors. It’s indicated for CHF patients with edematous conditions, as well as for patients with cirrhosis of the liver and essential hypertension and hypokalemia. The drug is manufactured by Chicago-based Searle.
The RALES study, a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial, was conducted in 15 countries and involved 1,663 CHF patients. Over the course of 24 months, 372 people in the placebo group died (44%) and 283 people in the Aldactone group died (34%). The study was stopped 18 months before its scheduled conclusion when the disparity in mortality rates became apparent.
Avoid potential legal woes with review process
Create policy with interdisciplinary oversight
Patient education materials could be cause for legal action if a patient were harmed by following the information in a booklet. That’s why it is important to have a sound review and distribution process in place, says Penny Daubney, RN, BSN, CPHQ, senior risk management consultant for Optima Healthcare Insurance Services in Rancho Santa Margarita, CA.
Daubney advises patient education managers to create a checklist that can be used to evaluate booklets to determine if they are appropriate. Also, it is a good idea to have an interdisciplinary team develop the tool.
The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations in Oakbrook Terrace, IL, has created patient education standards that require an interdisciplinary approach. Therefore, if this approach is not followed, the plaintiff’s attorney could determine that the standards were breached, explains Daubney.
Breach of a standard — and damages as a result of the breach — are grounds for a lawsuit, says Daubney. Therefore, if nursing began circulating a booklet about an orthopedic procedure without the appropriate interdisciplinary approval, the attorney might point to the Joint Commission standard as a basis for the suit, she says.
The material in booklets needs to be kept up to date as well. It is important to have a tracking system in place so materials can be reviewed on a regular basis and out-of-date material is not distributed, says Daubney.
For example, at the University of Utah Hospitals and Clinics in Salt Lake City, all material is entered into a computer database and a policy for reviewing materials every three years is in place. "We can generate reports from our catalog, such as the documents from an area that is three years old," explains Jackie A. Smith, PhD, patient education coordinator at the health care facility. The list of booklets that need to be reviewed is sent to the appropriate unit, such as cardiac or pulmonary.
Survey patients after they read booklets
It’s a good idea to perform patient booklet evaluation to make sure the materials are understandable and effective, says Daubney. This could be a survey given to the patient after he or she has read the booklet. The surveys used to evaluate the booklets should be kept on file.
No matter the method of evaluation or distribution, booklets should never be given to patients without a health care professional first going over the information. It’s important to document that the education did indeed take place and that the patient understood the information. "The education must be documented and the booklet never substituted for the education," says Daubney.
Subscribe Now for Access
You have reached your article limit for the month. We hope you found our articles both enjoyable and insightful. For information on new subscriptions, product trials, alternative billing arrangements or group and site discounts please call 800-688-2421. We look forward to having you as a long-term member of the Relias Media community.