OSHA: Our office provides laser treatment. What OSHA specific regulation(s) address laser plume (smoke)? Currently, OSHA has no specific standards for laser/electrosurgery plume hazards but note that smoke byproduct could produce upper respiratory irritation, cause potential in-vitro mutagenesis, and generate infectious viral fragments. Thus, OSHA could cite under these two regulations: 134(a)(1)-Inadequate Personal Protective Equipment […]
No one likes a bad review. It is much more common for an unsatisfied customer to post a negative review than it is for a happy customer to post a positive review. Most business advice sites recommend responding to both good and bad reviews because it helps resolve issues and actually wins back customers. However, […]
HIPAA: TRUE OR FALSE: It is a good idea to respond to a patient who posts an issue or a negative review online so everyone can see that your practice is helpful and caring. A: FALSE! Even though it is the patient who posts information about their visit or health condition, if your practice’s reply […]
The HIPAA Privacy Rule grants patients the right to access their health information in a way that is easy and affordable for them. Providers are required to give patients access to their health information. There are some exceptions, of course, so getting the process right can be as confusing as being in a house of […]
Most malware that is delivered as an email attachment is usually a Word (.docx) or Excel (.xlsx) file. Cybersecurity threat analysts have recently discovered that PDF attachments are now becoming more popular to distribute malware. Since many people have been trained to be suspicious of opening Word and Excel files, they are not as cautious […]
Infection Control Alert: The CDC is encouraging physicians to consider adenovirus testing for children with symptoms of Hepatitis of unknown origin. Hepatitis symptoms include fever, fatigue, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, dark urine, light-colored stools, joint pain, and jaundice. It can also be caused by other viruses. Adenoviruses cause cold-like symptoms, fever, sore […]
In the past week the American Dental Association has confirmed that they fell victim to a cybersecurity event. There is a banner posted on the home page of the website alerting their members of this continuing situation and asking for their patience as the issue is resolved. News outlets are consistently reporting the following information […]
The HIPAA Privacy Rule grants patients the right to access their health information in a way that is easy and affordable for them. Providers are required to give patients access to their health information. There are some exceptions, of course, so getting the process right can be as confusing as being in a house of […]
Preparedness is the first step in preventing workplace violence. OSHA outlines five core building blocks which when implemented should reduce the chance of a violent event. Check out this great white paper on Preventing Workplace Violence: A Road Map for Healthcare Get Your Free Copy of Preventing Workplace Violence: A Road Map for Healthcare Facilities
OSHA: Our healthcare facility checks COVID-19 community levels to monitor transmission rates in our county. Will the Community Levels determine the preventive steps for our office? No. The CDC states “healthcare settings should continue to use Community Transmission Rates and continue to follow CDC’s infection prevention and control recommendations for healthcare settings.” When viewing Community Transmission […]
