Your eyes do not deceive you. Today,we're talking about our much-acclaimed institutes of healing. What makes a hospital so scary, you ask? Well, it's not exactly the needles. How does a medical error fatality rate estimated at 210,000 in 2008 sound? That means that in 2008, an estimated 210,000 people in the United States' hospitals alone lost theirlives as a direct result of being hospitalized. [1] That puts medical errors above the CDC #3 (chronic low respiratory disease) cause for death for all age groups in their WISQARS system. The most common cause of fatality? Hospital acquired infection.[1][4]
Hospital acquired infections alone, at last surveillance, affect roughly 5.8 million people between the US and the EU- 1.7million in the US, 4.1 million in the EU.[2] In the US, in 2002, these infections accounted for 98,000 deaths. [3] I wasn't able to find much in the way of statistics to speak to how many of these infections carried some form of antimicrobial resistance. My suspicion is that most of them carried resistance to at least early generation antibiotics. Remember, though, that suspicions aren't facts.
The truth of the matter is that hospitals still contribute significantly to your ability to survive a given trauma or medical incident- and they're getting better at it. I want you to check out source number five before you're done with this page. In 2000, there were 31.7 million hospitalizations and 776,000 inpatient deaths- compared to 2010 with 35.1 million hospitalizations and 715,000 inpatient (admitted patient) deaths. With four million extra patients, the inpatient death rate went down. A quick math experiment with those statistics will show that being admitted to the hospital only carries a 2% mortality rate, and they're not admitting people with scraped knees. Furthermore, while it's small solace, 75% of all hospital deaths occurred in people older than age 65, which means that it's happening mostly in people with multiple complicating medical conditions, on multiple medications, with bodily systems that, frankly, aren't what they used to be. In fact, for all causes of hospital admission, the inpatient death rates decreased, except for septicemia (systemic infection that spreads to and in the blood), which experienced a mortality rate increase of a whopping 17%. [5] I'd say that's less of an argument against the hospitals as it is an argument for the grave reality of antimicrobial resistance.
So what can you do? As always, the most powerful tool in your arsenal is knowledge. If you or a family member is admitted, take the opportunity to learn about your condition by asking your doctor, your nurse, the Internet, or all of them. Nurses are stretched thin in a lot of hospitals, so be patient, patient, but also be involved in your care. If something doesn't seem right, if you notice something going on with you or something the hospital's doing (such as an unexpected medication) doesn't seem right, calmly notify your healthcare team of your concern, or ask for an explanation. Politely ask anyone who wants to touch you if they've cleaned their hands, and notify your nurse if you notice fever, chills, or other signs of infection. You can also help by writing or calling your legislature, or supporting bills or politicians that fund research, science, and public health. Talk to your friends and share what you've learned. Also, be sure to subscribe and share the blog with your friends. If you have questions, comments, concerns, or suggestions, feel free to comment here on the blog, or send me a message on my google plus account.
5. http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db118.htm
4. (Page 7, numbers one and four) http://www.cdph.ca.gov/pubsforms/Pubs/OHIRmedicalcomps2000-2002.pdf
3. http://www.cdc.gov/HAI/pdfs/hai/infections_deaths.pdf
2. http://www.who.int/gpsc/country_work/summary_20100430_en.pdf
1. http://mobile.journals.lww.com/journalpatientsafety/_layouts/oaks.journals.mobile/articleviewer.aspx?year=2013&issue=09000&article=00002
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