Head of the hospital bed raised? Check. Patient’s teeth brushed? Check.
Those simple but often overlooked steps can help protect some of the most critically ill patients — those on ventilators — from developing deadly pneumonia. And if they knew about them, family members could ensure the steps weren’t forgotten.
Hospitals are rife with infections and opportunities for medical mistakes. Now, a nearly $9 million project at Johns Hopkins University aims to combine engineering with the power of patients and their families to prevent some of the most common threats.
More
DelMarVa's Premier Source for News, Opinion, Analysis, and Human Interest Contact Publisher Joe Albero at alberobutzo@wmconnect.com or 410-430-5349
4 comments:
That's great ! Patients at PRMC aren't allowed to have soap. They get a bag of wipes.
The unfortunate times I've been at Hopkins, they have billboards displaying a "team" of the month being honored for washing their hands.
I'd rather see employees who were fired for not washing their hands once.
i had major surgery at hopkins about a year and a half ago. they are on top of everything. top notch hospital, doctors, nurses, caregivers, staff, and of course cleanliness.
compare this to prmc. hopkins wins hands down...
Hospital Acquired Infections (HAIs) have been a big problem in the health care industry for a long time. The health care industry’s penchant for secrecy and lack of oversight is legendary so this is not a topic that they want to talk about but it is very real and very dangerous. The U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services estimates that about one in twenty patients contract an HAI. Hospital Acquired Infections (HAIs) such as C-Diff and MRSA are some of the leading causes of death in this country. Exact statistics are hard to find because the ICD reporting codes allow hospitals to list causes of death simply as "sepsis” or “pneumonia” , leaving out the vital fact that this infection was acquired in the hospital. Industry sources generally acknowledge that death by HAI is one of the top eight causes of death in the nation. And the unfortunate fact is that most of these infections are preventable. Proper hospital procedures, better hospital management and real accountability would go a long way towards resolution of this problem. Patients need to be aware of these important facts.
Post a Comment