Every healthcare organization should develop and implement a policy and a well-defined process that provides guidance for managing incident and breach response.
In the August and September issues, CMM told you about a recent set of revisions to the discharge planning section of the CMS State Operations Manual. While most of the changes amounted to housekeeping, CMS did take the unusual step of including some non-binding best practice recommendations related to discharge practices. Surveyors won't penalize your organization if you don't follow these recommendations, but experts recommend following the agency's advice whenever possible.
Q. Is it acceptable for admitting and patient registration staff to photograph patients upon check- in for identification purposes? Is it permissible to take pictures of behavioral health patients for the same purpose?
The healthcare industry is changing rapidly, and if you've been paying attention to the news you've probably noticed the recent wave of hospital mergers.
