FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Jan. 31, 2008
DHEC to post raw data for hospital infection rates
COLUMBIA – Data concerning hospital associated infections is now reported by hospitals and will be available to the public on Feb. 1, the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control announced today.
"Hospital infection rates for South Carolina are now required to be reported to DHEC and that information will be gathered and verified; then reported to the state legislature each year beginning in February of 2009," said Jerry J. Gibson, M.D., director of DHEC's Bureau of Disease Control. "However, in the interim year, DHEC will post the raw data to its Web site on Feb.1, 2008, as required by law.
"It is important to note that the first year's raw data is preliminary data that has not been confirmed," Dr. Gibson said. "It will include only a few months worth of data and will contain too few procedures to offer a complete picture of hospital infection rates," Dr. Gibson said. "At this point, it will also be data that the department has not checked for accuracy or completeness.
"Until DHEC can confirm the data, we would advise people to be careful how they use the information. It would be unwise to use the reports to compare hospitals because of the small numbers and lack of verification," Dr. Gibson said. "Also, keep in mind that some patients have conditions that make them more likely to get infections. A patient’s age, underlying diseases and level of illness all affect their risk for infection.
Dr. Gibson said hospitals that treat patients who have greater risk of infection would be expected to have higher rates.
"Furthermore, with only five months of data, the numbers are not yet large enough to be statistically meaningful," Dr. Gibson said, "Because the numbers are so small, substantial differences in infection rates will often be the result of chance variation rather than real differences in risk between hospitals."
According to Dr. Gibson, infections that patients get while they are being treated in hospitals and other health care facilities are a major public health problem in the United States. These "healthcare associated infections" (HAIs) can be very serious. They can increase both the cost and length of a hospital stay and could even result in death.
"Remember, no single source of information can be used to determine overall quality of care in a hospital," Dr. Gibson said. "A hospital's experience with HAIs is only one thing to consider when choosing a facility. You should also consider the advice of your physician and the experience of the facilities and surgeons. Any factors that are unique to you should be considered as well."
Dr. Gibson recommends that concerned citizens read the information on hospital acquired infections and the definitions of terms on the HAI Web site to help them understand the HAI data reports. Reports are available from the DHEC Web site at: http://www.scdhec.gov.
Once familiar with the terms, go to the "S.C. Hospital Associated Infections Reports" to see hospitals grouped by general bed size and listed alphabetically. Each hospital's report can be seen by clicking on the name of the hospital.
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NOTE TO EDITORS and REPORTERS:
Hospitals are to submit their data to DHEC through the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) data system.
For more information:
Clair Boatwright – (803) 898-4461
E-mail – boatwrc@dhec.sc.gov