Unsurprisingly, more hospitals were compliant with the 300 consumer-friendly shoppable services portion of the rule than the machine-readable file portion, with 60% of hospitals complying with the shoppable services requirement.

This technology has been available for some time, of course, but was not nearly as widely used as it is today. How can providers make sure they have the know-how to help their patients maintain their care, live healthy lives, and get the medications and treatments they need, all while working with them remotely?

"Sepsis is a huge burden on everyone. It is the No. 1 cause of death in hospitals. It is the No. 1 cost of hospitalization. It is the No. 1 cause of readmission to hospitals. Sepsis is a huge public health crisis. Then you magnify this crisis on certain minority communities, and you have something that is really dire," said Thomas Heymann, MBA, president and CEO of the Sepsis Alliance

Finding ways to improve your HVAC systems can be difficult, particularly with the financial strain that many healthcare organizations find themselves in. But there are some simple steps to improve your IAQ, says Eric Mitchell, a principal and director of mechanical engineering at Goldman Copeland, a New York City–based consulting engineering firm.

Review your hospital’s inventory of different types of sprinkler heads, and then ensure you have at least six spare sprinkler heads for each type and temperature rating of those installed in your facility. Those spare sprinkler heads will need to be readily available and stored in a cabinet along with any associated wrench or tool needed to switch them out. And the location of that cabinet must be in an area that does not exceed 100°F.