Editor's note: This letter to the editor is in response to the article, "The Miseducation of America's Nurse Practitioners," published by Bloomberg. It has been lightly edited.

Emergency department visits involving a COVID-19 diagnosis have been on the rise for several consecutive weeks. For the week ending July 27, 2.2% of ED visits at U.S. hospitals were positive for the virus, marking a 12.1% jump from the week prior. 

 A patient was injured in an officer-involved shooting at Lexington Medical Center in West Columbia, S.C., on Aug. 2, state and hospital officials confirmed to Becker's. 

Starting in 2025, a new CMS measure will require public reporting on a hospital's capability to provide age-appropriate care for older adults, the agency announced Aug. 1.

Penn Medicine's flagship hospital noted zero central line-associated bloodstream infections in fiscal years 2022 and 2023, according to a study published Aug. 1 in Critical Care Nurse. 

Aurora-based Children's Hospital Colorado is using SimWars, the national simulation competition for emergency medicine residents, to train and inspire staff — resulting in better patient care and staff morale, as well as a substantial donation.

NYC Health + Hospitals has launched a free produce delivery service for patients in its lifestyle medicine program.

A strain of bacteria that causes severe and sometimes drug-resistant infections has been detected in all six World Health Organization regions, the group reported July 31. 

WellSpan Health, a York, Pa.-based system with nine hospitals and more than 250 care locations, saved seven patients $600,000 in healthcare costs by allocating an extra $3,600. 

The University of California San Francisco lung transplant program has performed 116 lung transplants in a year. 

Emergency department visits related to vaping have more than doubled across Virginia since 2020, WTOP News reported Aug.1.

A rare, but fatal genetic disease that accelerates aging in children, progeria, could soon have a cure, The New York Times reported July 24.

Public trust in physicians and hospitals has sharply declined from 71.5% in April 2020 to just 40.1% in January 2024, according to results of a study published July 31 in JAMA Network Open.

More cities in Vermont are turning to community nurses to provide in-home health care, WBUR reported July 30.

Nashville, Tenn.-based Vanderbilt University Medical Center is relaunching an eight-week paid summer externship program for qualified prelicensure nursing students.

The Infectious Diseases Society of America has recognized eight hospitals for excellence in antimicrobial stewardship.

Health systems must ensure they're working to better understand and prevent safety risks among patients with disabilities, said Tejal Gandhi, MD, chief safety and transformation officer at Press Ganey. 

Many virtual nursing models involve separate teams where nurses work as either a bedside nurse or a virtual nurse. But Cleveland-based University Hospitals is taking a different approach. 

Franklin, Tenn.-based Community Health Systems has hired almost 3,000 registered nurses during the first half of 2024 and its nurse retention rate is "very strong at its highest level in a decade," CEO Tim Hingtgen said July 25 during the company's second-quarter earnings call. 

The rapid proliferation of nurse practitioners programs in the U.S. is spurring concerns about the quality of training for these advanced practice providers and potential consequences for patient safety, Bloomberg Businessweek reported July 24.