July 12, 2010

Rates of Central Line Infections in Hospitals Continue to Be Troubling

Glowing%20Gloves.jpgThe Indiana medical malpractice attorneys at our firm have been following the progress made in reducing the incidence of deadly central line infections or catheter-related blood stream infections in hospitals. We’ve blogged on the subject in the past, including success stories from hospitals around the country that have been able to reduce the incidences of these infections merely by following simple steps, like checklists.

However, at far too many hospitals in the country, preventing these infections continues to be a challenge. According to a new survey conducted by the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC), these infections continue to be a major challenge in the facility where they work.

Continue reading "Rates of Central Line Infections in Hospitals Continue to Be Troubling" »

July 5, 2010

Study Shows Black People May Have Higher Sepsis Infection Risks

Black patients are not just more likely to contract severe sepsis in hospitals, but they're also more likely to die from these infections. Those results come from a study conducted by researchers at the University Of Pittsburgh.

The researchers found that a black person had a 67% higher chance of being hospitalized with severe sepsis, than a white person. Not only that, these severe infections also contributed to blacks having an 80% higher chance of dying from sepsis, than their white counterparts. Among black persons, the rate of severe sepsis that required hospitalization was 9.4 for every 1,000 population, while for white persons, it was 5.6 for every 1,000 population.

Continue reading "Study Shows Black People May Have Higher Sepsis Infection Risks " »

June 28, 2010

Infection Control Still a Problem at Outpatient Surgical Centers

syringe.jpgThere has been much focus on infection control in hospitals, but little has been done to cement the cracks at outpatient surgical centers, where infection rates continue to remain unacceptably high.

A study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows high infection control deficiencies at these centers. The CDC surveyed 68 ambulatory surgical centers in three different states. The agency was basically looking at how these centers complied with hand hygiene, environmental cleaning standards and injection safety.

Continue reading "Infection Control Still a Problem at Outpatient Surgical Centers" »

June 7, 2010

July Is the Worst Month for Hospital Errors

stethescope%201.jpgFor long now, doctors have noticed that the number of medical errors is constant for all months of the year, except in July when there is a noticeable spike in medication errors. It has been suspected that this spike is because more interns are coming in at teaching hospitals during this month. A study by researchers at UC San Diego, now confirms this.

The researchers have published the results of a study, that show that July is easily the worst month when it comes to medication errors. In fact, it's the worst month that you could choose to check into a hospital, simply because you're likely to be treated by inexperienced interns. The rate of medical errors in the month of July is 10% higher than in other months of the year.

Continue reading "July Is the Worst Month for Hospital Errors " »

May 10, 2010

A Rapid Shift to Electronic Medical Records Leads to Errors & Injuries

keyboard.jpgAs part of the Obama administration’s health care reform package, hospitals will be encouraged to shift from paper medical records to electronic records. So convinced is the administration about the efficacy of these electronic systems in preventing errors and reducing costs, that it has offered incentives to facilities that can speed up the process of shifting to electronic records. Unfortunately, the hurry to shift to an electronic system has been accompanied by poor staff training, computer glitches, and other factors that increase the risk of errors.

Last month, Huffington Post carried a report on how the shift to electronic medical records is being accompanied by increasing numbers of errors. According to data from the Food and Drug Administration, there have been scores of reports of adverse incidents resulting from the use of the electronic systems.

Continue reading "A Rapid Shift to Electronic Medical Records Leads to Errors & Injuries" »

April 19, 2010

Increase in Hospital Infection Rates In Spite Of Control Measures

bandaid.jpgThe numbers of patients who contracted certain kinds of potentially deadly infections while in hospital, actually increased over last year. According to a study by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, overall patient safety ratings have improved across the nation, but there has been an increase in blood stream infections and urinary tract infections.

According to the report,
• The rate of bloodstream infections increased at a rate of 8%.
• Urinary tract infections increased at a rate of 4%.
• There was no change in the rate of bloodstream infections caused through catheters placed in central veins.
• There was a 12% drop in the rates of postoperative pneumonia. This was the only good news on the list.

Continue reading "Increase in Hospital Infection Rates In Spite Of Control Measures" »

February 25, 2010

How Indiana Patients Can Prevent Central Line Infections

Sanitizer.jpgPatients still struggle to determine a hospital’s safety based on its infection rates. However, things are slowly changing for the better. More and more hospitals are beginning to report their infection rates. Approximately, 1,500 hospitals report infection data to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. However, these reports are strictly confidential. The Agency of Health Care Research and Quality also collects data from hospitals in 42 states, but these hospitals are not named.

The Leapfrog website reports patient safety ratings, allowing you to screen hospitals in any city in Indiana, and compare ratings. Simply enter your search preferences (city/state) and wait for the listings. Follow THIS LINK to see an example of hospitals in Indianapolis.

Continue reading "How Indiana Patients Can Prevent Central Line Infections" »

February 18, 2010

Indiana Hospitals Can Prevent Deadly Central Line Infections

IV%20drip.jpgEvery year, one particular type of medical infection kills approximately 30 percent of the estimated 99,000 people who died from hospital infections. Consumer Reports is discussing how hospitals around the country including Indiana hospitals, have been able bring down these infection rates through simple steps.

These infections are central line infections, and they are introduced through intravenous catheters that allow intensive care patients to receive medication, nutrients and fluids. The central lines have long catheters inserted into a large vein connected to the heart. These are different from regular IV lines, and can stay in place for months.

Continue reading "Indiana Hospitals Can Prevent Deadly Central Line Infections" »

February 11, 2010

Types and Causes of Radiation Errors

xray3.jpgIndiana medical malpractice cases involving radiation errors are extremely technical and complicated. One reason is because there isn’t just one way in which a radiation error can occur. With new medical technologies, using radioactive rays to diagnose and treat, and a continued paucity of training and oversight, the types and sources of these errors have increased.

The types of errors have been numerous.

Continue reading "Types and Causes of Radiation Errors " »

February 4, 2010

Indianapolis Radiation Therapies Offer Hope, But Also Present Risk of Injuries

radiation.jpgNew radiation technologies are offering patients more focused and precise treatment, but as a series of investigative reports in the New York Times shows, lack of safeguards, software flaws, faulty programming, poor safety procedures or inadequate staffing and training are causing these technologies to harm the very patients they are meant to treat.

The New York Times profiles a series of radiation errors involving new, more advanced and highly sophisticated machines capable of delivering a treatment called Intensity Modulated Radiation Therapy (IMRT). The errors have included overdoses caused by poorly configured systems, radiation that misses all or part of the target or is focused on the wrong part of the body and other errors. With these increasingly sophisticated radiation tools, you would think that the margin for errors would be virtually nil. In fact, as the NYT reports, the complexity of the machines that deliver the radiation, combined with the failure of hospitals to implement processes that catch errors in time and poorly trained staff, have all helped create a “crisis” situation.

Continue reading "Indianapolis Radiation Therapies Offer Hope, But Also Present Risk of Injuries " »

October 13, 2009

H1N1 Concerns Indiana Residents

Virus.jpgThe H1N1 virus is a big concern for Indiana residents, as it is for the rest of the country. Many local schools, day cares and churches are taking extra precautions in the fight against the growing virus threat.

Doctors’ offices have started to remove toys and magazines from their sitting areas. Churches are asking their ushers to wear gloves while collecting the morning offering. Schools are shutting their doors to prevent the spread of the virus. Indianapolis area hospitals are limiting the age of their visitors.

Continue reading "H1N1 Concerns Indiana Residents" »