Dallas area hospitals invest in infection prevention

DALLAS — With growing concern over hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) like Clostridium difficile (C. diff) and Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), several Dallas area hospitals are investing heavily in infection education and prevention, according to the Dallas Morning News.

The Baylor Health Care System has allocated $20 million for infection education, part of which included inviting Victoria Nahum who started the Safe Care Campaign to educate hospital staff and administrators about the dangers of carelessness after three of her family members became infected in three hospitals in three states in 10 months, the story stated.

Another facility, Texas Health Resources Inc., reinforces infection prevention protocols with "time outs" in surgical situations to double-check the sterilization of equipment and supplies, the story noted.

According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), health care associated infections account for an estimated 1.7 million infections and 99,000 deaths each year, and cost hospitals $28.4 billion to $33.8 billion annually, or $26,000 per patient.

Many of the efforts employed by hospitals to fight infections revolve around creative programs that stress proper hand hygiene, the story added.

According to the story, Methodist Health System spent $80,000 on small hand sanitizer pumps in and around patient rooms, a $30,000 increase from 2004.