News

November 6-10 is the Society for the Advancement of Blood Management’s Patient Blood Management Awareness Week, and the society would like to encourage all to share the knowledge and resources of patient blood management (PBM). Our goal at WSHA is to help hospitals with implementing and sustaining evidence-based PBM best practices. ... Read More >>

The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) is offering a special, time-limited offer of financial assistance to facilities that commit to implementing measurement and reporting using the NHSN Antimicrobial Use and Resistance (NHSN-AUR) module.... Read More >>

WHSA has been partnering with hospitals across Washington and Alaska to increase flu immunizations in health care personnel in an effort to prevent transmission, absenteeism and presenteeism. We reached an astounding 87.5 percent vaccination rate for 2016-2017 and are striving for even more vaccinations this season.... Read More >>

In the United States, approximately 61 percent of women giving birth receive an epidural or spinal anesthesia for pain relief in labor. The administration of this medication has often been blamed for an increased length of labor. However, a double-blinded, randomized control trial was published October 10 in Obstetrics and Gynecology, which demonstrated that epidurals have no effect on the length of the second stage of labor (10cm to delivery of the infant).... Read More >>

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently released Core Elements for Implementation of Antibiotic Stewardship Core Elements at Small and Critical Access Hospitals.... Read More >>

The American Hospital Association’s (AHA’s) Physician Leadership Forum will host a webinar from 10-11 a.m. Thursday, November 9 on improving care for adults hospitalized with substance use disorder, focusing on understanding needs, engaging leaders and changing systems.... Read More >>

Join health care leaders, stakeholders and national Choosing Wisely representatives in Seattle on Friday, October 27 for a day-long in-depth look at how the Choosing Wisely initiative in Washington State is moving from education to implementation.... Read More >>

The Opioid Medication and Pain infographic developed by the Bree Collaborative and the Washington Health Alliance has been translated by Public Health – Seattle & King County into 21 additional languages, from Arabic to Vietnamese. As a result, more people will have access to important messages about the risks of opioids.... Read More >>

Hospitals are routinely collecting information about patient race, but are they using it and does it matter? Stratifying outcomes by patient race, ethnicity, age or gender can provide valuable insights into your hospital’s culture and may lead to surprising findings.... Read More >>

The Maternal Mortality Review Panel recently released a public report outlining its findings and recommendations from the maternal death review for 2014 and 2015. The panel will soon reconvene to review maternal deaths that occurred in 2016. An update from Alexis Bates, Perinatal Health Consultant, and a letter from State Health Officer Dr. Kathy Lofy highlight the Department of Health’s (DOH’s) progress and next steps for the subsequent review period.... Read More >>