Merced and Mariposa county hospitals say they're doing their best to reduce the number of infections caught inside their wards. However, according to recent state reports, patients are still picking up some infections at hospitals.
Mercy Medical Center, for example, reported seven hospital-onset cases of MRSA infections from April 1, 2010, to March 31, 2011, according to the state reports. An onset case means the patient didn't necessarily acquire the infection at the hospital.
No other local hospitals reported having MRSA infections. However, the data are not risk-adjusted by hospitals, according to the reports.
The California Department of Public Health on Friday released six reports about certain types of health care-associated infections at hospitals across the state.
State officials hope the reports will enable hospitals to make improvements, as well as allowing the public to make more informed decisions on their health care.
The type of infections include central-line associated bloodstream infections, clostridium difficile infections, methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and vancomycin-resistant enterococcus bloodstream infections, and surgical site infections.
Mercy also reported three hospital-onset cases of vancomycin-resistant enterococci bloodstream infections.
In addition, the hospital had 29 hospital-onset cases of clostridium difficile infections, identified when the patient was admitted and 54 hospital associated clostridium difficile infections that were identified during the hospital stay.
Memorial Hospital Los Banos reported having one hospital-onset case of clostridium difficile and two hospital associated clostridium difficile infections that were identified during the hospital stay.
No area hospital reported having surgery-site infections.
The state health department maintains that the public reporting of health care-associated infections will over time lead to better, safer care and will reduce costs by reducing infections, said Ralph Montano, spokesman for the state department. "This can be achieved by implementing recommendations and best practices for the prevention of these infections," he said.
Bob McLaughlin, spokesman at Mercy, said in relation with the 56,382 patient days, the number of MRSA cases is in line with what hospital officials would expect.
Still, McLaughlin said the hospital's goal is to minimize infections. "Our goal is to have zero infections, but realistically for us we know that people are going to bring in infections into the hospital," he said.
Patients who fall into a high risk category are tested for MRSA, and about 50 percent of those patients already have it, McLaughlin said.
Vanessa Collins, infection control nurse at Mercy, said hospital officials educate staff and visitors about the importance of hygiene, such as hand-washing and covering coughs. There are stations with hand sanitizer, masks, tissue and gowns at every major public access point in the hospital.
Washing hands is the most effective way of preventing the transmission of an organism anywhere, Collins said.
Craig Baize, marketing and communications manager for Sutter Health Central Valley Region, said there are a number of strategies that Memorial Hospital Los Banos uses to reduce the risk of clostridium difficile infections. For example, he cited careful screening and use of antibiotics to treat infections "so that patients receive the recommended antibiotic for the recommended duration of time."
Hospital staff also follow hand sanitation practices and other measures to prevent the spread of infections. "We continuously monitor our cases for improvement and continuously improve practices based on findings and or proven, evidence-based research published in areas of prevention of hospital-acquired infections," he said.
John C. Fremont Healthcare District in Mariposa, a relatively small hospital, didn't report any infections. Theresa Loya, infection prevention nurse at the Healthcare District, said the hospital doesn't have an intensive care unit and doesn't preform surgeries. "That blocks us out of some reporting," she said.
Patients needing surgery are transferred to the nearest accepting hospital that can provide the care, Loya said. "That's a big factor," she said. "Those are the sickest people. When you have surgery, you are opening a human body -- that's a risk right there. Those are the big things for us that prevent our infections."
It's not fair to compare the Healthcare District with a hospital like Mercy, Loya said. "We don't have the same problems that they are dealing with," she said.
Regardless, the Healthcare District does work around infection prevention. For example, Loya said, she has secret people that rotate and are in charge of monitoring other staff members to make sure they wash their hands before patient care.
The disclosure of the information is required by a 2008 state law. Hospitals had sued the state to limit surgical infection reporting, but the court ruled against the hospitals and required the state to disclose infection rates for 29 separate surgical procedures, according to the Consumers Union.
Reporter Yesenia Amaro can be reached at (209) 385-2482 or yamaro@mercedsunstar.com.
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