A total of 23,287 Pennsylvania patients admitted to hospitals in 2009 contracted at least one infection during their stay, a new report released by the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council says. The infections lead to patients being readmitted to the hospital within 30 days.
The highest readmission rates were found among patients who acquired surgical-site infections. Those patients were initially in the hospital for procedures such as knee replacement surgeries, Caesarean sections or spinal fusions. Urinary tract infections and gastrointestinal infections accounted for the second and third leading causes of readmission, respectively.
The report said patients who contracted an infection while in the hospital had an increased mortality rate from 1.8 percent to 9.4 percent, and longer hospital stays up to 21.6 days from the typical 4.9 days.
Approximately 1.5 percent of Medicare beneficiaries age 65 and older (10,721 patients) contracted a healthcare-associated infection during their hospital stay. The estimated Medicare payment for these general acute care hospitalizations averaged $20,471, more than three times higher than cases without infections.
The attorneys at Messa and Associates have represented individuals in many cases involving medical errors including hospital-acquired infections. If you or a loved one has suffered serious injury or illness due to a hospital-acquired infection, please call us at 1-877-MessaLaw.
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