CDC: Too Many Patients Get Infections In Hospitals
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A visit to the hospital is not always a prescription for getting well. A new government health report says more needs to be done to keep patients from getting infections while in the hospital.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says on any given day, one in 25 patients is battling an infection.
That adds up to more than 720,000 infections a year.
Pneumonia is at the top of the list, as well as infections related to surgery.
"One in nine people who get a hospital-associated infection go on to die. This is a high rate and something, we think, is preventable," said Dr. Michael Bell, of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The CDC says some progress has been made.
Infections related to some common surgeries have declined, as well as infections related to tubes placed in the chest or arm.
