Hospitalist co-management program for neurosurgery inpatients reduces medical complications and length of stay

The May 2024 issue of The Joint Commission Journal on Quality and Patient Safety (JQPS) includes a study that evaluated the impact of a hospitalist co-management program on clinical outcomes in neurosurgical patients. Medical complications are common among neurosurgical patients and can jeopardize their clinical results, leading to longer lengths of stay, higher costs, and higher readmission and mortality rates.

Researchers at Hospital Universitario 12 de Octubre, Madrid, Spain, used a quasi-experimental study design to compare a historical control period to a prospective intervention arm.

Also featured in the May issue are:

• Team Relations and Role Perceptions During Anesthesia Crisis Management in Magnetic-Resonance Imaging Settings: A Mixed Methods Exploration (Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire)
• Taming the Wild West of Procedural Safety: Assessing Interprofessional Teams in Non-Operating Room Anesthesia (editorial)
• Preoperative Communication Between Anesthesia, Surgery, and Primary Care Providers for Older Surgical Patients (Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire)
• Development and Evaluation of I-PASS-to-PICU: A Standard Electronic Template to Improve Referral Communication for Interfacility Transfers to the Pediatric ICU (University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital, Iowa City, Iowa)
• Refining a Framework to Enhance Communication in the Emergency Department During the Diagnostic Process: An eDelphi Approach (University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan)
• Involving the Patient and Family in the Transfer of Information at Shift Change in a Pediatric Emergency Department (Hospital General Universitario Gregorio Marañón, Madrid)
• Improving Outcomes in Patients Sent to the Emergency Department from Outpatient Providers: A Receiver-Driven Handoff Process Improvement (University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa)
• Implementation of an Interdisciplinary Transfer Huddle Intervention for Prolonged Wait Times During Inter-ICU Transfer (Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago)
• Handoffs and Care Transitions: Interviews with Chris Landrigan and Theresa Murray (JQPS)

The May issue is part of JQPS’ 50th anniversary celebration. Each month, a topic of importance to the Journal and The Joint Commission will be highlighted. In addition to the articles described above, the May issue has an open-access list of handoff and care transition articles previously published in the Journal.

For more information, please visit the JQPS website.