How Common and Preventable are Sepsis-Associated Deaths in Hospitals?
A study by Chanu Rhee, MD, MPH, of Harvard Medical School, and co-authors, estimates how common sepsis-related deaths are in hospitals and how preventable those deaths might be.
In a retrospective study using medical record reviews of 568 patients who died in six U.S. hospitals or who were discharged to hospice in 2014 or 2015, sepsis was present in more than half (300) of the hospitalizations and directly caused death in more than one-third (198) of cases.
Most sepsis-associated deaths occurred in medically complex patients with severe coexisting conditions and most deaths were considered unlikely to have been prevented through better hospital care.
These findings suggest that further innovations in the prevention and care of underlying conditions may be necessary before major reduction in sepsis deaths can be achieved.
The study was conducted in only six hospitals and may not generalize to all hospitals.
Source: JAMA Network Open
Genomic Surveillance A New Frontier in Health Care Outbreak Detection
November 27th 2024According to new research, genomic surveillance is transforming health care-associated infection detection by identifying outbreaks earlier, enabling faster interventions, improving patient outcomes, and reducing costs.
Point-of-Care Engagement in Long-Term Care Decreasing Infections
November 26th 2024Get Well’s digital patient engagement platform decreases hospital-acquired infection rates by 31%, improves patient education, and fosters involvement in personalized care plans through real-time interaction tools.
Comprehensive Strategies in Wound Care: Insights From Madhavi Ponnapalli, MD
November 22nd 2024Madhavi Ponnapalli, MD, discusses effective wound care strategies, including debridement techniques, offloading modalities, appropriate dressing selection, compression therapy, and nutritional needs for optimal healing outcomes.
The Leapfrog Group and the Positive Effect on Hospital Hand Hygiene
November 21st 2024The Leapfrog Group enhances hospital safety by publicizing hand hygiene performance, improving patient safety outcomes, and significantly reducing health care-associated infections through transparent standards and monitoring initiatives.
