Healthcare Risk Management – August 1, 2021
August 1, 2021
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OSHA’s COVID-19 Emergency Standard Requires Written Plan, Precautions
The new COVID-19 requirements from OSHA for healthcare employers create substantial obligations, but many hospitals already are carrying out much of what is required. The challenge may come in formalizing a written plan and ensuring it addresses all of OSHA’s expectations. -
Healthcare Employers Can Mandate Vaccines, but Some Caution Necessary
Guidance from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission indicates healthcare employers can require employees to receive a COVID-19 vaccine. These mandates come with some obligations and risks. -
EEOC Vaccine Guidance Includes Exceptions
The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission guidance includes two important exceptions. Employers remain limited by the provisions of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Americans with Disabilities Act. Title VII requires employers to provide exemptions from any vaccine requirement to employees with sincerely held religious beliefs preventing them from taking the vaccine. Further, the ADA requires employers to provide exemptions from any vaccine requirement to employees with a disability that prevents them from taking the vaccine. -
Include Critical Care in Emergency Planning
Critical care often is overlooked in disaster planning. Risk managers should ensure this component is fully included. Critical care must ramp up quickly in a disaster, the same as the emergency department. -
Washington Health System Scores High in Safety and Quality
Virginia Mason Franciscan Health — which operates 11 hospitals and more than 300 care sites in the Puget Sound region of Washington — is reporting success with addressing hospital quality and safety measures, the result of bringing together two organizations with a strong history of patient care. -
Undiagnosed Brain Tumor Results in Permanent Brain Damage, $3.35 Million Award
In this case, the physician’s liability was a case of failure to diagnose, a particularly concerning result given the physician’s treatment of the patient over the course of more than four years. A failure to diagnose, or a delayed diagnosis, can cause significant injuries or dramatically worsen the patient’s condition. -
Defense Ruling on Appeal for Radiologist Who Reviewed and Reported Imaging Results
This case demonstrates both procedural and substantive defenses for physicians and care providers. For the procedural side, the reversal by the appellate court reveals defendants in malpractice cases need not always wait for a jury to determine the care provider did not act negligently.