The facts about hospital infections are alarming
- Every year in this country, two million patients contract infections in hospitals, and an estimated 103,000 die as a result, as many deaths as from AIDS, breast cancer, and auto accidents combined.*
- The CDC estimates that approximately 500,000 SSIs occur each year in the U.S.
- Hospital infections add an estimated $30.5 billion to the nation's hospital costs each year. Patients, insurers and taxpayers pay part of that cost, but hospitals have to absorb much of the cost. As a result, infections erode hospital profits. Preventing infections can turn a financially failing hospital profitable.*
- In October 2008, The Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMMS) will begin the process of eliminating reimbursement for the cost of HAI care.
- The number of hospital stays for patients infected with MRSA climbed from 38,100 in 1995 to 128,500 in 2000, and then to 368,800 in 2005, the latest year for which data are available. **
The good news is something is being done about it. Health organizations are now focusing on finding ways to address HAIs and SSIs through research and patient and hospital education as well as developing specific programs designed to drastically reduce hospital infections.
* McCaughey, Betsy. Unnecessary Deaths: The Human and Financial Costs of Hospital Infections. 2nd Edition. Committee to Reduce Infection Deaths, 2006. http://www.hospitalinfection.org/
** “Dramatic Increase in Antibiotic-Resistant Infections in Hospitalized Patients.” AHRQ News and Numbers. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. July 25, 2007
http://www.ahrq.gov/news/
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The Committee to Reduce Infection Deaths (RID) is a not-for-profit educational campaign committed to correcting the problem of hospital infections. RID’s groundbreaking publications include 15 Steps to Reduce Your Risk of a Hospital Infection and Unnecessary Deaths: The Human and Financial Costs of Hospital Infections.
The Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) is a reliable source of energy, knowledge, and support for a never-ending campaign to improve health care worldwide. The Institute helps accelerate change in health care by cultivating promising concepts for improving patient care and turning those ideas into action.
The Institute for Healthcare Improvement’s 5 Million Lives Campaign challenges American hospitals to adopt 12 changes in care that save lives and reduce patient injuries – one of these changes focuses on preventing Surgical Site Infections.
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) is the lead Federal agency charged with improving the quality, safety, efficiency, and effectiveness of health care for all Americans. AHRQ supports health services research that will improve the quality of health care and promote evidence-based decision making. Research and news address the issue of infection prevention in hospitals.
The CDC’s Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion (DHQP) protects patients, protects healthcare personnel, and promotes safety, quality, and value in the healthcare delivery system by providing national leadership for nine key areas -- one of these areas is to develop infection control guidelines and policies.
INFECTION CONTROL TODAY MAGAZINE
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