Sepsis From a Hospital: Medical Malpractice?

The national Center for Disease Control (CDC) estimates that nearly 1.7 million people each year will be the victim of a hospital acquired infection, such as staph, pneumonia and sepsis. These infections account for roughly 99,000 deaths per year and account for nearly $45 billion in additional healthcare costs.

Hospital Acquired Infections and Those Most at Risk

As of 2010, there are 27 states that have passed a Hospital Infections Disclosure Act (HIDA). This law requires all hospitals to report their infection rates to the State Department of Health and the public. In some states, such as Arizona, the state legislature trusts their hospitals and medical facilities to police themselves.

Sepsis, also called septicemia, is a condition that occurs when the body is trying to fight a severe infection that has spread through the patient’s bloodstream. The most common causes of sepsis are bacterial infections, and if left untreated can lead to death. Septic shock can occur when the cardiovascular system starts to fail and the patient’s blood pressure drops, depriving the body’s vital organs from receiving enough oxygenated blood.

Certain individuals may be at a greater risk of infection which include:

• Young children whose immune system isn’t fully developed
• People with pre-existing medical conditions, such as cancer that may be weak from treatment
• Patients who are admitted to the hospital for any length of time
• Very old people that may have weakened immune systems

Sepsis can develop rapidly and the sooner it is diagnosed and treated, the patient has a better chance of recovery.

How Infections Can Occur

Infections occurring more than 48 hours after admission are usually considered to be a hospital acquired infection. A patient can contract an infection from a variety of ways. The most common include:

• Surgical incision
• Insertion of a catheter
• Central line IV
• Patients requiring mechanical ventilation

Preventing infections in hospitals can be as simple as requiring all hospital staff to adhere to a strict hand-washing regimen. Unfortunately, compliance with such policies often yields poor results. It is your right as a patient to insist that anyone who you come into contact with at the hospital wash or sanitize their hands.

What is the Federal Government Doing to Help?

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recently put together a network where hospitals can share information about infections, categorized by the type of infection. Since only 21 states currently require that their hospitals contribute to the database, these numbers are not yet accurate on a federal level. In 2008, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services began halting payments to hospitals if they felt that a Medicare patient’s infection was “reasonably preventable”. In order to determine if the hospital was responsible for the infection, they started requiring all hospitals to make a note on the patient’s record if a particular diagnosis was “present on admission. The hospital won’t get paid for treating the condition if it wasn’t. As part of the healthcare reform that was recently passed, by the year 2014, reports regarding certain infections will be available on the federal Hospital Compare website.

Getting Legal Advice

When a hospital fails to prevent a patient from acquiring an infection during their treatment, they can be held accountable for their actions. Even though it may be difficult to prove, there are many ways to investigate a malpractice case. An experienced medical malpractice attorney will be able to evaluate your case and help you obtain compensation for your injuries.