Hospital-Acquired Infections
As you undoubted know if you are a regular reader of this blog, we represent plaintiffs in medical malpractice cases. We average almost three calls per business day from prospective medical malpractice plaintiffs; our screening process weeds out 98% of those calls and therefore we file less than 20 of those cases per year.
We are seeing a significant increase in the number of hospital-acquired infection calls we are getting. Of course, we have always gotten a good number of calls where people complain about getting a staph infection. But we have seen a virtual explosion in the number of calls.
That is why this article caught my eye. Apparently a hospital in Pennsylvania decided to attack the problem and believes that it saved 47 lives by doing so. One doctor said that their three year program demonstrates that "as much as 90 percent of common hospital-acquired infections could be prevented in a year's time if hospitals paid better attention to hygiene and standardized how intensive care unit patients receive care."
Other literature supports the conclusion that hospital-acquired infections are a real drain on our health care system and, more importantly, present a real risk to the health of patients. A paper published by the CDC puts the rate at 5 infections per 1000 patient days, double at larger institutions. The death rate is between 17,500 and 70,000 patients per year.
I know that many hospitals are making the effort to reduced the number of hospital-acquired infections. The work of the PA hospital demontrates that it can be done successfully.
I had a personal experience last December when my daughter had surgery first at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, and then at a hospital in Los Angeles that I will not name online. At MGH, attention to infection prevention was obvious. Hand sanitizer dispensers were placed in the elevator lobby of every patient floor, and by the door of every patient room. Every doctor, nurse, therapist or other hospital employee who entered her room was vigorously rubbing sanitizer on their hands and forearms. Masks and gloves were used whenver the surgical wound was exposed. Prophylactic antibiotics were prescribed and administered. When she left Boston, the healing of the surgical wound was excellent.
Then we flew to Los Angeles. Prophylactic antibiotics were discontinued by the second hospital. Hand sanitizers dispensers were in patient rooms, but generally ignored by personnel. Use of masks and gloves was much more casual. And my daughter developed a staph infection with a potentially life threatening epidural abscess that required debridement surgery on Christmas Eve, installation of a PIC line and administration of IV antibiotics for nearly a month.
I have read the studies on effectiveness of preventive measures to reduce hospital acquired infections. Such simple measures have the potential to prevent so much expense and heartache. I do not understand why these measures have not been universally adopted in the U.S.