Becker's Hospital Review

80 CMO / CARE DELIVERY Top 10 preventable medication errors from 2020 By Katie Adams P rescribing extended-release opioids to patients who are not educated about the addictive drugs' effects was the top preventable medication error in 2020, according to the Institute for Safe Medication Practices. e Institute for Safe Medication Practices on Jan. 27 released its list of the top 10 medi- cation errors from 2020, selecting errors and hazards that have not only been consistently reported, but also can be avoided or minimized through operational improvements. e 10 preventable medication errors: 1. Prescribing, dispensing and administering extended-release opioids to patients who are opioid-naïve 2. Not using smart infusion pumps with dose error-reduction systems in perioperative settings 3. Oxytocin errors 4. Hazards resulting from infusion pumps being positioned outside of COVID-19 patients' rooms 5. COVID-19 vaccine errors 6. Use of the "syringe pull-back" verification method during pharmacy sterile compounding 7. Combining or manipulating commercially available sterile products outside a pharmacy 8. Medication loss in the tubing when administering small-volume infusions with a primary administration set 9. Intraspinal injection errors with tranexamic acid 10. Use of error-prone abbreviations, symbols or dose designations n Northern California hospital CNO target of no-confidence petition By Kelly Gooch A no-confidence petition on the per- formance of San Joaquin Gener- al Hospital Chief Nursing Officer Belva Snyder, RN, was delivered to San Joaquin County supervisors and hospi- tal CEO David Culberson by nurses at the French Camp, Calif.-based facility, California Nurses Association/National Nurses United said. The union, which represents about 800 nurses in the San Joaquin County system, including nurses at San Joaquin Gen- eral Hospital, cites concerns about Ms. Snyder's leadership and her response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The nurses felt Ms. Snyder's "failed leader- ship" through the pandemic has been dan- gerous for patients and nurses," the Cali- fornia Nurses Association/National Nurses United said in a news release about the petition, delivered Feb. 9. "Her inadequate response to the pandemic has resulted in nurses and patients being unnecessarily exposed to the deadly virus and falling ill." Union members contend there has been a "severe and dangerous staffing crisis in San Joaquin County's health system" during Ms. Snyder's tenure, and that Ms. Snyder hired short-term traveling nurses instead of addressing nurses' concerns and settling a contract with them. Both sides have been in negotiations for a new contract since November 2018. Last October, nurses in San Joaquin County's health system went on strike for five days. In response to the petition, San Joaquin County and San Joaquin General Hospital leaders expressed confidence in Ms. Snyder. "Her work has been exemplary through- out this COVID-19 crisis," they said in a statement shared with Becker's Hospital Review Feb. 12. "As the hospital experi- enced increased inpatient census with [intensive care unit] volume over 180 per- cent of licensed capacity, she has been able to increase nursing staff to provide an appropriate number of nurses and demonstrated support for the safety of hospital employees." n 5 best-paying cities, states for physician assistants By Kelly Gooch P hysician assistant is the top healthcare job in the U.S., with the best-paid 25 per- cent making $130,530 in 2019, and the lowest-paid 25 percent making $92,800 that year, accord- ing to U.S. News & World Report. To determine the best-paying cit- ies and states for physician assis- tants, the publication used median salary data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The list was pub- lished in January. The best-paying cities for physician assistants: 1. Salinas, Calif.: $161,370 2. Leominster, Mass.: $156,250 3. Waterbury, Conn.: $154,550 4. Danbury, Conn.: $147,500 5. New Bern, N.C.: $146,880 The best-paying states for physi- cian assistants: 1. Connecticut: $137,060 2. Washington: $129,520 3. New Jersey: $129,440 4. Alaska: $128,530 5. California: $127,520 n

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