Flu is rising this season
Flu is unusually high right now. The Center for Disease Control says that this season could peak earlier. There are high rates of it in the south, according to the CDC. So far, the CDC has reported that 4.8% of deaths are attributed to the flu. 6.4% is considered an epidemic. February is typically when […]
Cyberattacks on the rise
Cyberattacks are on the rise in the healthcare industry. Because of these cyberattacks, it is important to know about because they are HIPAA violations. Keeping protected health information private is one of the most important duties of any healthcare organization. These attacks effect not only patient privacy, but also the inner workings of hospitals. Insufficient […]
Antibiotics Awareness Week
This week is Antibiotics Awareness Week. It is important to be know important facts about antibiotics, especially in flu se One of the biggest misconceptions about antibiotics is that they work against viruses. Viruses are not the same as bacteria because they are not alive. Therefore, The Center for Disease Control says only bacterial infections […]
Vaccines for pneumococcal disease
Vaccines are important to get, particularly as flu season is around the corner. But there is another illness that isn’t on most people’s radar: pneumococcal disease. Thankfully, there is a vaccine. Pneumococcal disease is extremely deadly, especially in adults. There are three major types: pneumococcal pneumonia, which affects the lungs, bacteremia, which affects the bloodstream, […]
Adakveo approved for Sickle Cell Disease
Those who suffer from Sickle Cell Disease could be getting a reprieve from some symptoms soon. The Food and Drug Administration approved crizanlizumab-tmca on Friday, November 15th. Around 100,000 people suffer from the disease, according to The Center for Disease Control. Furthermore, Sickle Cell Disease causes many painful symptoms. Some of them include leg ulcers, vision […]
HIPAA Laws and Compliance
A new report has come out with the rates of HIPAA noncompliance. The study from shows that 51% of providers are not completely in compliance with HIPAA’s Right of Access Law. Furthermore, Ciitizen conducted the study. One of the key findings was that patient records were not being provided in a consistent manner. Also, patients […]
New Zika Research Shows Patterns
Zika virus has been a huge scare lately, especially for pregnant women. Threats of the virus have made it impossible for some pregnant women to travel overseas. Fortunately, Goethe University in Germany has conducted a study tracking the prevalence of the virus in Latin America. Furthermore, the research comes at a crucial time. France reported […]
Stark Law could be revised soon
The “Stark Law,” more formally known as the Physician Self-Referral Law, could be updated soon. The current law does not allow doctors to make referrals associated with Medicare anywhere they have a “financial relationship” with. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services wants to update the law as a result of some of the […]
Dengue Vaccine Being Developed
Dengue fever is one of the deadliest threats to human health. The World Health Organization says that they are close to finding a vaccine. Before now, there has never been a viable vaccine for dengue, and WHO says it is vital. Takeda Pharmaceutical Company is behind the vaccine, called TAK-003. Perhaps most noteworthy is that […]
CDC Infections Progress Report
The Center for Disease Control released the 2018 National and State Healthcare Associated Infections (HAI) Progress Report. The report shows the occurrences of diseases in healthcare settings. The settings the CDC monitors are acute care hospitals, critical access hospitals, inpatient rehabilitation facilities, and long-term acute care hospitals. They sought to track the disease rate since 2015. The […]
New Training Offered by CDC
The Center for Disease Control is offering new Infection Control Training. The program will feature the best ways to prevent infection in hospitals and other healthcare settings. It also has courses dedicated to outreach for families so that more people benefit from infection control. The CDC has developed eight courses, each targeting a different method […]
Overworked nurses provide less care
Better nurse-to-patient ratios have been a hot topic in healthcare for a long time now. As a result, about 6,500 nurses participated in a walkout in Florida, Arizona, California and Illinois. They are demanding a system in which patients have more attention, which results in better care. The walkout reflects a much deeper problem […]