Princess Health and Princess Health andPrescribing antibiotics for viral infections must stop; overuse of antibiotics causes antibiotic-resistant 'superbugs'.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Princess Health andPrescribing antibiotics for viral infections must stop; overuse of antibiotics causes antibiotic-resistant 'superbugs'.Princessiccia

antibiotics Centers for Disease Control hospital-acquired infections

Gusty 17:57 Add Comment

Bronchitis is a viral infection, and antibiotics are not effective for treating viral infections.

Doctors know this, yet they continue to prescribe antibiotics to patients with bronchitis and other viral infections anyway, Ezra Klein reports on his new website, Vox.

Research shows that doctors prescribe antibiotics for acute bronchitis about 71 percent of the time even though they know that overuse of antibiotics is the leading cause of "superbugs," or organisms that are resistant to some if not all antibiotics, Klein reports. They do this because it makes patients feel better to walk out of the doctor's office with a treatment.

Klein goes on to paint a picture of a post-antibiotic future that could result from doctors prescribing antibiotics for viral infections. Klein reports that  patients must stop thinking that good physician care is the result of being treated with an antibiotic, especially in the treatment of bronchitis.

Kentucky and its Southern neighbors overuse more than their share of antibiotics.  The southeastern states are the highest users of antibiotics, with twice as many antibiotic prescriptions as states in the Pacific region, according to a study by the Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics & Policy, part of the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

CDC recommends that every hospital in this country have an antibiotic stewardship program and track their resistance and prescribing patterns. Half of all hospital patients get antibiotics and one-third of the antibiotics prescribed are inappropriate or are unnecessary, CDC Director Tom Frieden told Klein.

Frieden said the world is at risk of losing antibiotics to resistance created by over-prescribing, but a "modest investment" can thwart the most dangerous drug-resistant organisms. Working toward creating new antibiotics and then not falling into the same patterns of abuse must also be part of the solution, Frieden said. (Read more)

Princess Health and Deadly, drug-resistant bacteria are becoming more common in Kentucky hospitals; key lawmaker wants to require public reporting.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Deadly, drug-resistant bacteria are becoming more common in Kentucky hospitals; key lawmaker wants to require public reporting.Princessiccia

bacterial infections hospital-acquired infections hospitals legislature public health state government; General Assembly

Gusty 11:18 Add Comment

Nightmarish, drug-resistant bacteria that cause deadly infections are becoming more common in Kentucky hospitals, and a leading legislator on health issues says they should be required to report each case.

The state Department for Public Health and hospital officials are investigating the presence of carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae, or CRE, at Kindred Hospital Louisville, right, a long-term and transitional care facility.

�Since July, we have identified about 40 patients in whom we have cultured the organisms from one or more body fluids,� Dr. Sean Muldoon, chief medical officer for Kindred, told Laura Ungar of The Courier-Journal.

These superbugs kill about half of the patients who get infected. They have become resistant to nearly all the antibiotics available today, including drugs of last resort. CRE infections are caused by a family of germs that are a normal part of a person's healthy digestive system but can cause infections when they get into the bladder, blood or other areas where they don't belong, says the federal Centers for Disease Control. The presence of CRE in bodily fluids doesn�t mean someone is infected by the bacteria, because the patient could also be �colonized� by the bacteria without developing an infection, said Muldoon. CRE may be present in a patient before he or she is admitted to the hospital, or it can be transmitted from patient to patient at the hospital, Ungar notes.

Officials at several Louisville-area hospitals told The Courier-Journal last month that they have seen a growing number of CRE cases in recent years, reports Ungar. The CDC issued a warning report about the bacteria last month, but there has only been one "outbreak" of CRE listed for Kentucky. (Read more)

Given the threat of this bacteria, the CDC has called for quick action to stop these deadly infections, and the chairman of the House Health and Welfare Committee wants to tighten up CRE reporting requirements.

Rep. Tom Burch, D-Louisville, sent a letter to Gov. Steve Beshear proposing a new regulation that would mandate immediate reporting of CRE infection or colonization to the state. Burch said he plans to introduce a bill that would require such reporting by health-care facilities, and he is working with Dr. Kevin Kavanagh of the Somerset, Ky.-based watchdog group Health Watch USA, reports Ungar.

�If it gets in the community and spreads, we�re in trouble,� Kavanagh told Ungar. Burch emphasized this level of risk in his letter to the governor, saying that health-department involvement is crucial to preventing this deadly bacteria from "developing a foothold in Kentucky."

Princess Health and Nightmare, drug-resistant superbugs, including one that kills half the people who get it, are a big threat.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Nightmare, drug-resistant superbugs, including one that kills half the people who get it, are a big threat.Princessiccia

bacterial infections Centers for Disease Control healthcare-associated infections hospital-acquired infections

Gusty 13:04 Add Comment

"Nightmare bacteria" leading to deadly infections that are difficult and sometimes impossible to treat are on the rise in American hospitals, and threaten to spread to otherwise healthy people outside of medical facilities, according to a federal Centers for Disease Control Vital Signs report published Tuesday.
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These superbugs, carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae, or CRE, have become resistant to nearly all the antibiotics available today, including drugs of last resort. According to the report, CRE infections are caused by a family of germs that are a normal part of a person's healthy digestive system, but can cause infections when they get into the bladder, blood or other areas where they don't belong.

The report says almost all CRE infections are found in patients receiving serious medical care, and they kill up to half of patients who get bloodstream infections from them. In addition to spreading among people, CREs easily spread their antibiotic resistance to other kinds of germs, making those potentially untreatable as well.

Only 10 years ago, such resistance was hardly ever seen in this group of germs. Although these superbugs are uncommon, their prevalence has quadrupled in the past decade in medical facilities in 42 states, the CDC says.

The report calls for immediate action to stop the spread of these deadly infection; it is a critical time for U.S. doctors, nurses lab staff, medical facility leaders, health departments, states, policymakers and patients to help fight the spread through coordinated and consistent efforts.

The report asks patients to do three things: Tell your doctor if you have been hospitalized in another facility or country, take antibiotics only as prescribed, and insist that everyone wash their hands before touching you. For more details, click here for the Vital Signs report.

Princess Health and Revealing patient safety issues and medical errors are goals of Facebook page set up by ProPublica.Princessiccia

Princess Health and Revealing patient safety issues and medical errors are goals of Facebook page set up by ProPublica.Princessiccia

health care acquired infections hospital-acquired infections medical errors patients safety

Gusty 11:49 Add Comment

Photo by iStockphoto.com/selimaksan

Interested in creating a venue for those who have been harmed while undergoing medical treatments, ProPublica, the nonprofit, investigative news organization, has set up a Facebook page on the issue.

"Group members have already shared stories of personal disability or the death of a loved one due to surgical mistakes, becoming infected with deadly drug-resistant bacteria and dental mishaps � including cases they claim were not properly addressed by health care providers," Daniel Victor and Marshall Allen report. The page will be moderated by Victor and Olga Pierce.

The page is also open to doctors, nurses, regulators, health-care executives and others interested in discussing medical errors, their causes and solutions. Question-and-answer sessions with experts will be posted, along with links to the latest reports and policy proposals. (Read more)

Princess Health and 100 Kentucky hospitals join network to improve patient safety, fight hospital-acquired conditions such as infections.Princessiccia

Princess Health and 100 Kentucky hospitals join network to improve patient safety, fight hospital-acquired conditions such as infections.Princessiccia

healthcare-associated infections hospital-acquired infections hospitals Kentucky Hospital Association patients safety

Gusty 11:01 Add Comment

To help hospitals reduce preventable readmissions and hospital-acquired infections, 100 of Kentucky's 131 hospitals have joined the Kentucky Hospital Association's hospital engagement network. The group's goal is to help hospitals find ways to improve patient safety, reduce readmissions and hospital-acquired conditions such as infections, and share learning among hospitals.

The network hopes to reduce the incidence of adverse drug events; catheter-associated urinary tract infections; central-line-associated bloodstream infections; injuries from falls and immobility; obstetrical adverse events; pressure ulcers; surgical site infections; venous thromboembolisms or deep vein clots; ventilator-associated pneumonia; and preventable readmissions.

The two-year project is supported by a contract with the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services as part of the "Partnership for Patients" campaign, launched earlier this year by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The goal for the project is to reduce preventable  readmissions that occur within 30 days of discharge by 20 percent and hospital-acquired infections by 40 percent (compared to 2010) by the end of 2013.

"The commitment to patient safety and quality by hospitals across Kentucky has resulted in lives saved, fewer complications and reduced costs," said Mark J. Neff, chair of the KHA board of trustees and president and CEO of St. Claire Regional Medical Center in Morehead. For a list of hospitals participating in the network, click here.