> Hospital food contains sodium significantly higher than the Institute of Medicine's maximum recommendation of 2,300 milligrams of salt per day, reported the Chicago Tribune. Researchers noted that hospital food could harm patients with conditions that are sensitive to salt intake. Article
> Cookeville (Tenn.) Regional Medical Center will purchase Cumberland River Hospital from Restoration Healthcare of Celina for $6.75 million and take ownership of the facility August 1, the former announced Friday. Announcement
> Ontario hospitals saw C. diff infections drop almost 25 percent, thanks to mandatory hospital reporting, according to a study published Tuesday in the journal PLoS Medicine, the Toronto Star reported. According to the study, publicly releasing infection rates caused hospitals to look for new ways to prevent and reduce hospital-acquired infections. Article
> Hospitals in Oregon reported fewer infections in 2011, according to a report from the Oregon Health Authority. Central line-associated blood stream infections dropped 55 percent from 2009 to 2011, while surgical site infections from coronary artery bypass grafts and knee replacements fell 10 percent and 20 percent, respectively. Report (.pdf)
> While reform calls on hospitals to report risk-standardized outcomes for stroke and other common medical conditions, reporting models for mortality that don't consider stroke severity may distort the results, concluded a study published yesterday in Journal of the American Medical Association. Study
And Finally… Turtles make slow escape to freedom. Article