CMS Hospital-Acquired Conditions Nursing CEU Courses

This course will cover the 2021 National Patient Safety Goals for nursing staff in the hospital setting.

This course will cover the 2021 National Patient Safety Goals for nursing staff in the hospital setting.

Transfusions are a life-saving intervention, but transfusion errors, particularly errors involving ABO incompatibility, can be deadly. Three actions that have frequently been a contributing cause for ABO incompatibility errors are incorrect labeling of the blood sample for crossmatching, incorrect interpretation by personnel in the blood bank, and incorrect identification of the patient prior to initiation of a transfusion. Laboratory staff and nurses who are involved in the administration of blood products must strictly follow facility policies to ensure that they give the correct blood product to the correct patient.

Evidence-based practice allows nurses to use credible research to improve patient outcomes. By providing care in accordance with these practices, patients receive the best management and treatment options available. This learning activity reviews the evidence behind three initiatives: Spontaneous breathing and awakening trials for patients requiring mechanical ventilation, prevention of central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs), and the importance of early initiation of enteral nutrition in the critically ill patient population to reduce the risk of malnutrition.

Trauma is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in the U.S. (CDC, 2019a). Unintentional traumatic injuries and violence claim nearly 200,000 lives per year, with motor vehicle crashes and falls accounting for nearly 78,000 deaths in 2019 (CDC, 2019b). Trauma and violence also account for more than 2.5 million non-fatal injuries annually and are the leading cause of hospitalization, morbidity, and disability in people between the ages of 1 and 55 (CDC, 2019b). Among trauma victims, blunt chest trauma is cited as the primary cause of death in 20% to 25% of cases (CDC, 2019b).

This course has a maximum of 3 exam attempts.

• Explain the Joint Commission’s 2022 National Patient Safety Goals.

This course will cover the 2022 National Patient Safety Goals for allied health staff in the hospital setting. © Joint Commission Resources: National Patient Safety Goals. Oakbrook Terrace, IL: Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations, (2022). Reprinted with permission.

• Explain the Joint Commission’s 2022 National Patient Safety Goals.

This course will cover the 2022 National Patient Safety Goals for nursing staff in the hospital setting.

In 2020, suicide was the 12th leading cause of death in the U.S. (American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, 2022). Inpatient medical units are not designed to manage patients who are at risk for suicide. Further, healthcare professionals working in acute care settings often lack the specialized training to appropriately intervene with patients in serious psychological distress. Patients who die by suicide in hospital settings often have no previously documented psychiatric history. 

Since 2000, the epidemiology of Clostridioides (formerly Clostridium) difficile infection (CDI) has changed with significant increases in incidence and severity. Recently overall incidence of CDI and healthcare-associated CDI has decreased while community-associated CDI has not. CDI, once considered to be exclusively a hospital-acquired infection, had nearly 50% community-associated cases in 2017. Infections in those considered low risk (peripartum women, children, and young healthy adults) have increased. Many infected patients lack the usual predisposing CDI risk factors. This course discusses risk factors related to emergence of community CDI, ways community-associated CDIs are transmitted, and current prevention and treatment guidelines of CDI.

More than 54.1 million people undergo surgical procedures annually in the United States, and many suffer from avoidable adverse events. This course provides evidence-based practice (EBP) information to promote the management of hypothermia, hypoglycemia, hyperglycemia, and handover communication in the perioperative setting. Each topic includes an overview of EBP information that healthcare providers can apply to reduce patient harm from adverse events. The ability to apply the information depends on a solid understanding of EBP in the perioperative setting.