Hospitals

Hospitals are emailing some local doctors asking them not to send patients to the emergency room unless they exhibit severe symptoms.

Washington health care leaders say hospitals are again “dramatically over capacity,” as challenges discharging patients worsen and staff shortages persist. Officials say the high patient loads aren’t directly because of COVID-19 cases, although they are increasing, but due to delayed procedures and difficulties discharging hospital patients.

Since PeaceHealth announced its own deadlines, unions representing a swath of workers have leveled at least seven labor complaints.

More people than ever before are hospitalized for COVID-19 in Washington. That’s according to the Washington State Hospital Association.Cassie Sauer,…

Shannon Zawilski used to spend all day on her feet as a nurse in an intensive care unit, or ICU. Now, she spends her 12-hour shifts watching a screen.She…

Hospital-acquired infections can be life-threatening, and unwashed hands are often to blame. One hospital in California thinks banishing handshakes could help reduce infections.

Through home visits, very ill people get help with pain, stress and symptoms. Medical centers, initially skeptical, now embrace the program because it helps patients and makes financial sense.

The federal government wants to require that private accreditors release reports of problems they find during hospital inspections. Right now, the reports are kept confidential.

The $14.6 million Gardez Hospital in eastern Afghanistan is over budget and might be too expensive for local health authorities to run on their own.

Elderly hospital patients often arrive sick and leave worse off. But some hospitals are preventing these sharp declines by treating the elderly in units that minimize bedrest and spur mobility.