In the last several weeks, The Joint Commission published a list of the most commonly reported sentinel events, updated 20-year-old guidance on preventing surgical fires, and more.
Editor's note: This list will be updated throughout the year.
Five moves from The Joint Commission Becker's has covered from September to Oct. 18:
1. The Joint Commission on Oct. 18 published new guidance on preventing surgical fires and burns.The sentinel event alert replaces guidance published in 2003 and suggests hospitals focus on the "fire triangle," which refers to oxygen, ignition sources and fuel. Read more here
2. The Joint Commission issued a quick safety advisory Oct. 9 with best practices for the early identification of severe pressure injuries. The advisory encourages clinicians to look for certain warning signs and symptoms that may suggest a severe pressure injury, as wounds can be more severe than is visible to the naked eye.
3. In early October, the accrediting body published a list of the most frequently reported sentinel events for the first half of 2023. A total of 720 events were recorded, nearly half of which were falls.
4. Beginning January 2024, hospitals can begin to pursue a new voluntary certification from the Joint Commission on sustainable healthcare practices.
5. Jonathan Perlin, MD, PhD, president and CEO of The Joint Commission Enterprise, recently spoke to Becker's about three newly launched certifications. Learn more about the new certificatins from the interview here.
Aug. 15 to Aug. 30:
1. The Joint Commission has updated medication compounding requirements for hospitals to better align with national practice standards, the organization said Aug. 21.
2. The Joint Commission acquired the National Quality Forum with the goal of consolidating quality measures. The NQF will maintain its independence in developing consensus-based measures, implementation guidance and practices that benefit stakeholders but both will build on measuring quality and rationalizing the measurement landscape.
3. The accrediting body issued a sentinel alert on preserving patient safety after a cyberattack, suggesting actions hospitals should take to prevent and respond to incidents.
4. The Joint Commission was among five medical societies that published new recommendations to support hopsitals in preventing catheter-associated urinary tract infections.
July 12-July 21:
1. Effective Aug. 27, The Joint Commission is eliminating 200 additional standards from its accreditation programs for ambulatory and behavioral health centers, critical access hospitals, laboratories and nursing homes, marking the accrediting body's second major set of reductions.
2. A Joint Commission leader spoke to Becker's about the actions hospitals can take to advance toward its new Health Care Equity Certification Program. Among the areas hospitals should pay close attention to are ensuring staff are trained in existing equity initiatives before implementing any changes; strengthening data collection and reducing language barriers. Read more here.
3. Cleveland Clinic's Chief Clinical Transformation Officer James Merlino, MD, has been selected to serve as The Joint Commission's executive vice president and chief innovation officer, effective Aug. 1.
4. On July 1, the accrediting body launched a memory care certification for assisted living communities. The voluntary certification was created in partnership with the Alzheimer's Association to recognize facilities that provide high-quality care for residents with Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia.
5. The Joint Commission was one of five national medical groups to publish revised infection prevention strategies for acute care settings July 11.
April 26-June 8:
1. Ahead of National Time Out Day on June 14, the accrediting body shared ways to make surgical time outs more effective and engaging. The tips are focused on the site marking process, given errors in this step are often the cause of wrong site surgery.
2. Several of The Joint Commission's elements of performance for critical access hospitals will be added or revised to align with CMS' final rule published in the Federal Register in November.— regarding restraint and seclusion as well as the complaint process
3. In advance of launching its Health Care Equity Certification on July 1, The Joint Commission rolled out an online resource center to assist healthcare systems in earning the certification.
4. The Joint Commission named three people to its executive leadership team May 1, each of whom will report to the organization's president and CEO, Jonathan Perlin, MD, PhD.
5. Orthopedic services are the most frequently cited in wrong-site surgery claims, according to an analysis of closed claims data published in the May edition of The Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Patient Safety. Read more findings from the study that explored wrong-site surgery risk factors here.
Jan. 18-April 12
1. In a quick safety advisory published April 10, The Joint Commission shared recommendations on how to prevent light source-related burns that can occur during laparoscopic or arthroscopic procedures.
2. The Joint Commission published its 2022 review of sentinel event data April 4. There were 1,441 sentinel events reported last year and the most prevalent types were falls, delay in treatment, unintended retention of foreign object, wrong surgery, and suicide.
3. In late March, the accrediting body issued a quick safety advisory with best practices and guidelines related to suicide risk screening.
4. The Joint Commission partnered with Manchester Specialty Programs to provide insurance pricing benefits to Joint Commission-accredited nursing homes, assisted living facilities, home care, hospice and medical staffing firms.
5. In January, the patient safety group published two new alerts to reduce morbidity and mortality in pregnant and postpartum patients: a sentinel alert on eliminating racial and ethnic disparities, and a safety advisory on mental health conditions as the leading cause of pregnancy-related deaths.
November 28, 2022 - January 17, 2023
1. The patient safety organization has elevated health equity from a leadership standard to a national patient safety goal. The change will take effect on July 1, according to a Jan. 10 news release from The Joint Commission.
2. The Joint Commission has named three new members to its board of commissioners, including Susan Fox, president and CEO of White Plains (N.Y.) Hospital.
3. The organization is eliminating 168 standards (14 percent) and revising another 14 standards in an effort to make its accreditation programs as "efficient and impactful on patient safety, quality and equity as possible." Read more on the overhaul of quality metrics here.
4. The Joint Commission is launching a new voluntary certification program on health equity. Hospitals will be invited to pre-apply for certification in early 2023, though the application won't be available until July 1.
5. The accrediting body will hold a safety briefing with healthcare organizations at the start of every accreditation survey starting in 2023, the organization said Dec. 13.
6. In November, The Joint Commission updated its timeline for how often it will evaluate licensed practitioners' ability to provide care from two years to three.