Pacific Grove, CA Hospitals Spending More Time And Money On Infection Prevention: View From A Privat
Pacific Grove, CA Hospitals Spending More Time And Money On Infection Prevention: View From A Private Duty Caregiver Serving Carmel, Carmel Valley, Carmel-by-the-Sea, Gilroy, Gonzalez, Greenfield, Hollister, King City, Marina, Monterey, Pacific Grove, Pebble Beach, Salinas, San Juan Bautista, Seaside And Soledad California
Roughly 1 in 20 people who enter a hospital will get a potentially deadly infection, according to the federal Department of Health and Human Services. Older seniors are at high risk because they often have repeat visits after being released from the hospital, upping the odds each time they return. This has caused the medical community to put intense focus on the spread of bacteria, which recent studies have shown are on common surfaces like sinks, faucets and TV remote controls. There have been a number of advances in fighting hospital infections recently, including germ-killing ultraviolet lights and powerful new disinfectants containing chlorhexidine which can kill even the most deadly germs like Clostridium difficile, which causes about 14,000 deaths per year in the U.S. alone. The spores can live for weeks, even on a doorknob, and are incredibly difficult to kill. "These are killer infections. The patients have a right to be protected from them," Kathy Roye-Horn, a hospital infection prevention director, told the Wall Street Journal. Hospitals must do something, not only for the good of their patients but for their bottom lines. The Obama Administration has set a goal of reducing the number of hospital infections by 40% next year from 2010 levels. The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services has jumped in to address the problem, refusing to reimburse hospitals for treatment of infections the patients received while in the hospital. They are tracking the outbreaks and facilities rating the worst will start receiving reduced federal payments starting in 2015. I'm glad to see more attention paid to this area. Many of our clients at Family inHome Caregiving are in their 90's and we have seen many go in and out of the hospital repeatedly. The threat of infection is always there and can be deadly for someone at that age. It's too bad that many hospitals are under such financial pressure that it takes government intervention like the threat of reduced payments in order to get the rate of infection down.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303506404577446521050981752.html
About Richard Kuehn & Family inHome Caregiving of Monterey:
After more than a decade of caregiving, both in a professional environment and for a 97 year old family member I was dissatisfied with service from local caregiving agencies. I became convinced of the need for a service which provides very personal assistance to elderly and founded Family inHome Caregiving serving the Monterey Peninsula. Please visit my blog where I talk about important senior issues at:
http://www.familyinhomecaregiving.com/Blog
Roughly 1 in 20 people who enter a hospital will get a potentially deadly infection, according to the federal Department of Health and Human Services. Older seniors are at high risk because they often have repeat visits after being released from the hospital, upping the odds each time they return. This has caused the medical community to put intense focus on the spread of bacteria, which recent studies have shown are on common surfaces like sinks, faucets and TV remote controls. There have been a number of advances in fighting hospital infections recently, including germ-killing ultraviolet lights and powerful new disinfectants containing chlorhexidine which can kill even the most deadly germs like Clostridium difficile, which causes about 14,000 deaths per year in the U.S. alone. The spores can live for weeks, even on a doorknob, and are incredibly difficult to kill. "These are killer infections. The patients have a right to be protected from them," Kathy Roye-Horn, a hospital infection prevention director, told the Wall Street Journal. Hospitals must do something, not only for the good of their patients but for their bottom lines. The Obama Administration has set a goal of reducing the number of hospital infections by 40% next year from 2010 levels. The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services has jumped in to address the problem, refusing to reimburse hospitals for treatment of infections the patients received while in the hospital. They are tracking the outbreaks and facilities rating the worst will start receiving reduced federal payments starting in 2015. I'm glad to see more attention paid to this area. Many of our clients at Family inHome Caregiving are in their 90's and we have seen many go in and out of the hospital repeatedly. The threat of infection is always there and can be deadly for someone at that age. It's too bad that many hospitals are under such financial pressure that it takes government intervention like the threat of reduced payments in order to get the rate of infection down.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702303506404577446521050981752.html
About Richard Kuehn & Family inHome Caregiving of Monterey:
After more than a decade of caregiving, both in a professional environment and for a 97 year old family member I was dissatisfied with service from local caregiving agencies. I became convinced of the need for a service which provides very personal assistance to elderly and founded Family inHome Caregiving serving the Monterey Peninsula. Please visit my blog where I talk about important senior issues at:
http://www.familyinhomecaregiving.com/Blog
