Becker's Hospital Review

82 CMO / CARE DELIVERY Milwaukee Hospital Suspends Employees for Leaving Homeless Patient in Cold By Brian Zimmerman A dministrators at Milwaukee-based Au- rora Sinai Medical Center suspended an undisclosed number of employees Jan. 23 aer staff discharged a mentally ill homeless man clothed in only a hospital gown and scrub pants Jan. 22, according to report from the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. A picture and video of the man surfaced on social media and local television reports in late January, depicting the man sitting shoeless on a wet side- walk outside of the hospital. e individual who took the video said the homeless man was rolled out of the hospital in a wheelchair and le on the sidewalk, Eva Welch, director of the local home- less organization Street Angels Milwaukee Out- reach, told the Journal Sentinel. Ms. Welch also told the newspaper the man was brought to a shelter two weeks prior to the inci- dent aer receiving treatment for frostbite on his right foot at a different hospital. She said workers with her organization previously witnessed Au- rora Sinai's security personnel discharge another homeless person into freezing temperatures. "ey literally rolled him out of the wheelchair onto the sidewalk," Ms. Welch told the Journal Sentinel. In a statement emailed to Becker's Hospital Review, Tami Kou, director of public affairs for Milwau- kee-based Aurora Health Care, said the hospital is conducting an internal investigation of the in- cident. "While this is a highly complex case, it is clear that our protocols and values were not followed, and we're deeply troubled by this," Ms. Kou said. "We've set up a task force to help best address these complicated cases and ensure safe discharge planning for vulnerable individuals … We're also re-educating caregivers on our service commit- ments to treat all patients with dignity and respect. What occurred was contrary to our values, and we're doing everything that we can to make sure it doesn't happen again." News of patient dumping in Milwaukee follows similar incidents reported in Maryland and Cal- ifornia. n Saline Shortage Complicates Flu Treatment at Hospitals Nationwide By Mackenzie Bean T he ongoing saline bag shortage, caused by manufacturing disrup- tions in hurricane-damaged Puerto Rico, is complicating influenza treatment nationwide, reported CBS Philly. Clinicians often use saline to dilute intravenous drugs prior to administering them to patients. To mitigate the saline shortages, many hospitals are switch- ing patients from intravenous drugs to the same medication in pill form. However, many flu patients can't keep oral drugs down, making the saline shortage a growing concern for hospitals nationwide amid rising flu cases. "We all need to understand that there is a crisis brewing with this," said Joseph Montella, MD, vice president of medical affairs at Camden, N.J.- based Cooper University Hospital. The hospital has developed a program to conserve saline supplies, which includes protocols like regularly evalu- ating patients to ensure IV treatments are necessary and switching patients to oral medication whenever possible. As of late January, the FDA was confident saline supplies and other IV flu- ids would increase within a few weeks, although shortages would not be resolved immediately. n DEA Loosens Regulations, Allows NPs and PAs to Prescribe Meds for Opioid Addiction: 4 Things to Know By Brian Zimmerman T he Drug Enforcement Agency issued a deregulatory measure Jan. 23 to expand access to medication-assisted treatment for opioid ad- diction in underserved, rural communities with few physicians. Here are four things to know. 1. The new rule permits nurse practitioners and physician assistants to gain certification to prescribe buprenorphine, which can help curb opioid crav- ings and minimize withdrawal symptoms. The move brings the agency in line with the Comprehensive Addiction and Recovery Act signed into law in 2016. 2. The 2016 legislation adjusted the Drug Abuse Treatment Act of 2000, which stated only physicians registered with the DEA could prescribe con- trolled substance for addiction treatment. This left patients in rural com- munities underserved, as 90 percent of physicians certified to prescribe buprenorphine practiced in urban counties, according to 2017 data from the National Rural Health Association. 3. The 2000 law left "53 percent of rural counties without any prescribing physician and 30 million people living in counties where treatment is un- available," said the DEA. As a result, many rural patients must travel long distances to receive outpatient buprenorphine treatment. 4. The DEA has approved 5,000 mid-level practitioners to treat and pre- scribe medication to patients with opioid addiction. Nearly 43,000 such practitioners nationwide may now qualify for this DEA approval. n

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