http://www.AnesthesiologyNews.com/descriptionen-ushttp://www.anesthesiologynews.com/index.asp?srv=rss&section_id=3&show=dept&article_id=14572Tue, 3 Feb 2010Certified registered nurse anesthetists are specifically permitted to administer labor epidurals for analgesia and to perform “minimal to moderate sedation” for other purposes without physician supervision under new interpretive guidelines for hospital anesthesia recently issued by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.http://www.anesthesiologynews.com/index.asp?srv=rss&section_id=8&show=dept&article_id=14571Tue, 3 Feb 2010Patients on mechanical ventilation in the intensive care unit often undergo repeated radiologic scans during their treatment, in some cases receiving cumulative exposures akin to survivors of atomic warfare, a new study has found. http://www.anesthesiologynews.com/index.asp?srv=rss&section_id=21&show=dept&article_id=14573Tue, 3 Feb 2010With an estimated 100,000 to 150,000 dead, and some 250,000 injured, the Haiti quake stands as one of the worst natural disasters in recent history. It also prompted one of the largest medical missions, as physicians, nurses, pharmacists and other health care providers have streamed to the stricken island nation to assist in the rescue effort.http://www.anesthesiologynews.com/index.asp?srv=rss&section_id=383&show=dept&article_id=14576Mon, 2 Feb 2010This article is Part 1 of a two-part series by Lowell Feinstein, DO, MBA, and Keith Schmidt, MD. Part 2, in a subsequent issue, will discuss treatment protocols for cocaine toxicity and the findings of a survey on the anesthetic management of otherwise healthy patients who abuse cocaine and are scheduled to undergo surgery. http://www.anesthesiologynews.com/index.asp?srv=rss&section_id=442&show=dept&article_id=14592Mon, 2 Feb 2010Today, new focus has been placed on the most cost-effective methods to ensure that the “5 rights” remain fully enforced in the OR. Many health systems have opted to outsource some of their compounding services in the name of efficiency. The second installment of a 2-part series, this monograph will discuss drug waste and workflow efficiency in the setting of the OR and offer strategies for maximizing efficiency.http://www.anesthesiologynews.com/index.asp?srv=rss&section_id=1&show=dept&article_id=14442Thu, 5 Jan 2010et another study has shown that a computerized prescriber order entry (CPOE) system is not a cure-all for medication errors. This time, the technology failed to prevent more than 100 clinically significant drug errors during an audit of an inpatient renal transplant unit.http://www.anesthesiologynews.com/index.asp?srv=rss&section_id=1&show=dept&article_id=14443Thu, 5 Jan 2010A team of German and Austrian researchers has shown, however, that combining a controlled perivascular injection of local anesthetic with a superficial cervical plexus block under high-resolution imaging provides sufficient anesthesia without the need for intraoperative supplementation in these patients.http://www.anesthesiologynews.com/index.asp?srv=rss&section_id=1&show=dept&article_id=14441Wed, 4 Jan 2010At the 2009 annual meeting of the American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA), two clinicians took up the battle over whether succinylcholine should be withdrawn or should maintain a rightful place in the anesthesiologist’s armamentarium.http://www.anesthesiologynews.com/index.asp?srv=rss&section_id=1&show=dept&article_id=14440Tue, 3 Jan 2010Despite the frequency with which they palpate the cricothyroid membrane, anesthesiology residents are not particularly accurate at identifying the structure, a team of Irish researchers has found.http://www.anesthesiologynews.com/index.asp?srv=rss&section_id=21&show=dept&article_id=14438Mon, 2 Jan 2010Judith Jacobi, PharmD, is the newly elected president of the Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM), and the first pharmacist to hold the position. Dr. Jacobi, a critical care pharmacist at Methodist Hospital/Clarian Health in Indianapolis, spoke recently with Anesthesiology News’ sister publication, Pharmacy Practice News, about the current challenges facing critical care medicine and the future direction of the specialty.