A new study indicates that hospital ICUs can reduce the risk of infections in pediatric patients by following procedures that are tailored specifically for pediatric patients, including a focus on central line maintenance.

Pediatricians from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore studied pediatric infections as part of an ongoing effort by the National Association of Children's Hospitals and Related Institutions. They found that the rate of pediatric ICU infections fell to 2.3 infections per 1000 central line days from 5.2 infections, after they used pediatric-specific procedures.

The doctors recommend a bundle of instructions that Arizona medical malpractice lawyers believe would be easy for any ICU to follow. These include scrubs of chlorhexidine and proper hand washing procedures to reduce infections.

Before insertion, doctors and nurses must take special care to:

• Wash hands before insertion
• Wash the area with a mix of chlorhexidine for a minimum of 30 seconds,
• Use a special insertion checklist that will allow staff to stop insertion in non-emergency situations, when proper hygiene procedures are not being followed
• Use sterile barriers for both staff and patient
• Avoid using iodine at the insertion site
• For maintenance, doctors and nurses must
• Conduct a daily assessment of whether the line is really needed
• Use a chlorhexidine scrub to care for the catheter site
• Change gauze dressings every two days and clear dressings every seven days, unless these are soiled or loosened
• Replace tubing within twenty-four hours after starting an infusion
• Change caps within 72 hours, or according to manufacturer recommendations
• Use a prepackaged change kit

In adult ICUs, hospitals have experimented successfully with central line insertion safety procedures to reduce infection rates. However, the exact same procedures are not likely to benefit pediatric patients. For these patients, proper and daily maintenance of the ports can result in greater benefits in reducing infection rates.

Arizona medical malpractice attorneys have been concerned about poor infection control strategies at outpatient clinics, which account for a large number of operations performed every year.  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has now released new guidelines to prevent infections in these centers.

More than 75% of operations in the United States every year are now performed in outpatient clinics, and not in hospitals.  These outpatient clinics include primary care offices, ambulatory surgery centers and endoscopic clinics.  However, most patient safety efforts tend to focus on safety in hospitals.  That has meant an increased risk of infections in outpatient clinics.

This is in spite of the fact that there's research to suggest that infection risks in outpatient clinics are just as severe as those in hospitals.  In fact, because there's lower focus on safety in outpatient centers, patients in these facilities may be at an even higher risk of contracting infections than those in hospitals.  The new guidelines developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention should help streamline and define the techniques that can be used to prevent infections in outpatient centers. 

Among other things, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that ambulatory surgery centers and outpatient clinics develop and maintain proper infection prevention programs and ensure that there are sufficient supplies like hand hygiene products, and personal protection gear to prevent infections.  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also suggests that at least one individual be trained in infection control procedures and employed on a full-time basis in the facility.  The facility must also have proper infection prevention policies, and must provide regular training in infection prevention strategies to all health care personnel.

The annual report by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality shows that hospitals around the country still need to do much work to improve the existing safety culture in their facilities, so that health care professionals are not punished for reporting errors.  The report also finds great room for improvement in safety during handoffs and shift transfers.

The annual report titled the Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture 2011 User Comparative Database Report analyzed data acquired from staff at more than 1,000 hospitals around the country.  There were some very interesting findings for Arizona medical practice attorneys. 

The good news was that 80% of the staff members reported that they experienced strong teamwork in their units, while 75% said that many of their patient safety suggestions were considered by supervisors.

The bad news was that too many hospitals continue to remain vague about their policies on reporting of medical errors.  Only 44% of the hospital staff who participated in the survey said that they believed that the organization had a non-punitive attitude to errors, meaning that errors or mistakes that were reported would not be recorded on the files, or held against them.  That shows that there are far too many staff members who may be wary of reporting errors, because of the fear of punishment in any form.

This could possibly also be linked to the finding that 54% of the hospital staff reported no adverse events in their hospitals over the past year.  To Arizona medical malpractice attorneys, it seems suspiciously like errors have possibly been underreported, possibly because of the fear that hospital staff have about punishment. 

45% of the respondents in the survey said that they believed that hospitals could do much better to improve safety during shift transfers, and improve transfers across hospital unit.  The report recommends that hospitals share the results of this survey with their staff members, encourage units to share ideas about the best practices for preventing errors, and monitor progress.

Arizona medical malpractice attorneys often find that the simplest techniques can be among the most effective when it comes to preventing hospital-acquired infections.  Infection control professionals at the Trinity Medical Center in the Quad Cities of Illinois and Iowa have used a Red Box safety zone system to reduce the risk of hospital-acquired infections.

According to the infection prevention team, the "Red Box" safety zone consists of a 3-foot square of red duct tape that extends from the doors of those patients who have contracted infections.  This allows communication with patients in isolation while conserving resources.

Currently, most hospitals have rules in place that require health care professionals to wear personal protective equipment before they enter the room of a patient who is in isolation due to infection.  Health officials need to be properly equipped so that they can prevent any chance of cross infection.  However, wearing special personal protective gear to see a patient who is in isolation can be cumbersome.  It can also be expensive.

The findings of the study were published at the 38th Annual Education Conference and International Meeting of the APIC.  The study found that the hospital would save about 2,700 hours a year by using this safe zone system.  Further, a hospital could save as much as $110,000 a year from this technique. 

Using a Red Box safety zone around the person’s room can provide health care professionals an additional visual cue informing them of the need to exercise contact safety precautions.  Earlier, there was only a sign outside a patient’s door to indicate that a patient was suffering from an infection, and that doctors and nurses needed to maintain precautions.  The Red Zone is more noticeable, and provides stronger visual cues to medical professionals.

A new study indicates that people who have drinking problems or other alcohol abuse disorders are much more likely to die from hospital-acquired infections.  These people are also much more likely to require extensive hospitalization after an infection, and may rack up a bigger hospital bill than patients without any alcohol disorders.

The results of the study have been published in the journal Alcoholism: Clinical and Economic Research.  According to the study, patients with alcohol use disorders including alcohol abuse, alcoholism or any other alcohol use patterns that cause harm, are at a high-risk for infections. 

Patients with alcohol disorders who contracted infections were up to 71% more likely to die from the infection.  These people were also required to stay in the hospital for a period of at least two days more than persons who did not suffer from alcohol disorders.  The hospital expenses of these patients were at least $500 more than those patients who did not suffer from alcohol use disorders.

Every year, approximately 1.7 million patients in the United States contract an infection in the hospital.  Arizona medical malpractice lawyers have encouraged proper handwashing and hand hygiene procedures in hospitals as a means to combat these infections.  Health care professionals, including doctors and nurses and others in direct contact with patients, must follow proper handwashing procedures before attending to each patient.  However, such practices may have limited efficacy in the case of patients with alcohol use disorders. 

In such cases, there may be the need for specific therapeutic interventions.  It's very important that patients with alcohol use disorders and their families make doctors aware of these issues.  Both patients, who are scheduled for hospital admissions as well as those who are admitted into the hospital for an emergency, must make doctors aware of such alcohol use disorders.