At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, many elective surgical procedures were canceled or postponed due to limited resources (e.g., personal protective equipment, diagnostic tests, redeployment of healthcare personnel). This commentary discusses the implications of rationed non-urgent surgical care within the context of medical ethics: beneficence, non-maleficence, justice, and autonomy. The authors developed an algorithm to guide surgical teams through the decision-making process of delaying non-urgent surgical procedures, if necessary, in the future. 

… Journal of surgical education … J Surg Educ … This pre-post study examines the effects of the …

This review documents 35 cases of unsafe injection practices in the United States over the past decade, leading to more than 100,000 patients being exposed to communicable diseases. In most cases, clinicians reused syringes or medication vials intended for single-dose usage. Although the authors ascribe these violations to failure to follow basic infection control practices, subsequent analysis of one widely publicized case also revealed that safety culture played a role, as nurses did not feel empowered to report improper injection practices due to fear of retaliation. The article also discusses the challenges of notifying patients about potential harm, and a recent Australian article describes the notification process used after a similar large-scale safety problem was identified.

This review investigated outbreaks of hepatitis B and C virus in outpatient settings and found that transmission was uniformly caused by failures to follow basic principles of infection control.

… publication of the National Association of School Nurses … J Sch Nurs … Children with chronic illnesses often must take …