Safety

WA hospital cuts infection rate in half

Ambulatory Safety Monitor, April 28, 2004

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Overlake Hospital in Bellevue, WA, cut its infection rate by more than half after participating in a 13-month surgical infection control program, according to The Associated Press.

The 337-bed hospital reduced its surgical infection rate from 12 in 2002 to five in 2003. Some of the steps the hospital took to prevent surgical infections include clipping the hair on patients' legs instead of shaving it to prevent tiny cuts that could lead to infection, giving antibiotics at the proper time, and keeping the patient's body warm.

A national survey of 39,000 surgical procedures in 2002 noted that almost half of the patients did not get antibiotics at the proper time, increasing the risk of infection, according to the AP.



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