REPORT: 25,914 Sickened By Visits To PA Hospitals

INQUIRER: Hospitals in the Philadelphia region fared poorly in so-called hospital-acquired infections in 2009, according to a new report issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Health. Overall, 250 hospitals across the commonwealth reported that 25,914 patients contracted infection during the course of their care. The report due out Tuesday afternoon detailed the number of infections at each of the hospitals and included a detailed examination of two common types of infections – catheter-associated urinary tract infections and central-line-associated bloodstream infections. […] Medical experts say that many of these so-called hospital-acquired infections can be prevented, saving lives, unnecessary illness and millions or even billions of dollars of care. The full report and a consumer oriented version of it are available on the Pennsylvania Department of Health’s website. The report by the Department of Health is the first to cover a full year of reporting by 250 state hospitals and includes data on infections at individual institutions, ranging from 1,446 cases at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania to 1 case at Barix Clinics of Pennsylvania – the Bucks County hospital specializing in obesity surgery. The 2009 data will serve as a benchmark for the hospitals which must achieve annual reduction targets or face possible sanctions, ranging from fines to bans on new admissions. MORE