The Joint Commission has released updated accreditationrequirements for diagnostic imaging service providers in U.S. hospitals and ambulatory care centers. Although the new rules emphasize imaging safety in positive ways, more specific guidance is needed, according to safety advocates. {read more here}

University at Buffalo researchers and colleagues have designed a nanoparticle detectable by six medical imaging techniques. This illustration depicts the particles as they are struck by beams of energy and emit signals that can be detected by the six methods: CT and PET scanning, along with photoacoustic, fluorescence, upconversion and Cerenkov luminescence imaging. {read more here}

The healthcare sector of the U.S. economy will be hiring at a faster pace in 2015 as a healthier economy and shrinking uninsured population fuel an uptick in demand for routine and discretionary services. The era of hiring restraint—fueled by the recession and the steady rise in high-deductible plans—appears to be ending.  The hiring binge will be uneven, though. The outlook for growth in hospital employment—healthcare’s largest employer—is modest at best. {read more here}

The use of fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography allowed researchers to successfully identify clinical signs of inflammation in patients with polymyositis and dermatomyositis, according to recently published data. {read more here}