Latest news with #IllinoisHealthandHospitalAssociation
Yahoo
29-03-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Surgery staff push for certification requirement with Illinois bill
Springfield, Ill. (WCIA) – Surgeons and surgery room staff came to the Capitol Thursday to push for a bill that could change requirements for surgical technologists. Surgery technologists are healthcare professionals who help surgeons during surgical procedures. They make sure the surgery room is clean, sterile, and the surgical team has the proper tools to do their job efficiently. Surgeons and certified surgical technologists filed a bill with Rep. Barbara Hernandez (D-Aurora) called the Operating Room Patient Safety Act. This bill will require all new surgical technologists to complete an accredited education program and obtain a national certification after completing their certification first. Manufacturers would stop selling Styrofoam containers under Illinois bill Professor of Surgical Technology at Richland Community College, Brooke Oliver, said that having education and certification helps minimize errors. 'We anticipate the surgeons' every step,' Oliver said. 'We are trained to manipulate body tissue and organs. We prepare and pass instrumentation. And above all, we are your loved one's voice when they are anesthetized to ensure patient safety. The importance of our work cannot be overstated as we directly affect patient outcomes and the overall success of surgical procedures.' Several hospitals and associations oppose the bill. The Illinois Health and Hospital Association Senior Vice-President of Government Relations, Dave Gross, said by making certification and education a requirement, this will cause delays in care because it could limit the number of qualified surgical technologists available. 'The legislation, by requiring a college degree, closes off a path that has been used for years by many qualified individuals who, through life circumstances, may not have had the time or resources to pursue a college degree,' Gross said. 'This paper ceiling requirement will create a supply shortage in this position, which will in turn delay patient access to surgical services. This very situation has already occurred in two states that enacted identical legislation.' Advocates attributed COVID-19's impact to healthcare staff shortages, leading people to go online to acquire a diploma to work in a surgical room. One surgical technology program director at Midwestern Career College said this is about ensuring patient care and better patient outcomes after citing studies. 'Studies have shown that a 55% drop in these errors can occur if we have a certified surgical technologist in the operating room,' Brittany Burgess said. 'We can reduce the time that the patient is under anesthesia by working efficiently because of the skilled knowledge that we have.' Bill in Illinois Capitol would add human traffickers to sex offender registry An IHA spokesperson said the proponents for the bill are not providing strong, evidence-based support for their claims. 'There is no peer-reviewed evidence that one certification path leads to higher quality outcomes,' Gross said. 'And if this bill were truly about quality and patient safety, the exemptions in the bill that affect millions of patients in underserved rural and urban areas would not be present.' The study pointed out by advocates refers specifically to foreign retained objects, not all types of errors, according to data from a Minnesota independent analysis. The bill to make certification a requirement has gained momentum in the House on both sides of the aisle. If signed into law, the bill would take effect in 2027. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
18-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
64 townhomes proposed for building currently occupied by offices along Naperville's I-88 corridor
An office building along Naperville's Interstate 88 corridor would be converted into 64 single-family townhomes under a plan to be reviewed Wednesday by the city's Planning and Zoning Commission. The project proposed by M/I Homes of Chicago requires rezoning, a conditional use permit and preliminary plat approval from the city before the 12-acre site at 1151 E. Warrenville Road can be transformed into into the new Northwoods residential community targeted at professionals and empty-nesters. Since 1983, the three-story building has housed the Illinois Health and Hospital Association's Naperville offices, association spokeswoman Paris Ervin said in an email. With more staff now working remotely, they no longer need the 48,000 square feet currently occupied and will be relocating to leased space at Northern Illinois University's Naperville campus on East Diehl Road, she said. M/I Homes is in the process of buying the property. 'The transaction is proceeding smoothly thus far with an anticipated closing later this spring,' Ervin said. The proposed development calls for a mix of two-story townhomes with units ranging from 1,994 to 2,436 square feet and three-story townhomes with units ranging from 2,474 to 3,111 square feet, according to documents submitted to the city. To move forward, however, the site must be rezoned from research and development use to office, commercial and institutional (OCI), with approval for a conditional use allowing townhomes to be located in an OCI district and a preliminary plat of subdivision. As part of the plat request, the developer is seeking a code variance that will allow for a two-lane, 24-foot-wide private entrance drive. The roadway would be owned and maintained by the community's homeowners association. City staff has found M/I Homes' proposal to be compatible with the city's Land Use Master Plan, which calls for 'medium density residential' development at the site, and recommends commission and Naperville City Council approval. The intent of the OCI district is to 'act as a transitional zone between intensive business areas and residential neighborhoods,' staff said in its report. The Northwoods development 'will take advantage of the remote and idyllic location and act as a transitional use between … residences to the north and office/business uses to the south,' M/I Homes said in its petition to the city. The Warrenville Road location is adjacent to the 797-acre Danada Forest Preserve, part of the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County. M/I Homes plans to incorporate a 15-foot native planting buffer along the shared property line with the forest preserve. Several nearby homeowners submitted written concerns abut and opposition to the development ahead of Wednesday's meeting, citing the potential environmental impact, increased density and light pollution. Construction cannot begin until the association completes the renovation of its new space, Ervin said. Relocation could take place sometime in late spring, she said. tkenny@
