by
Loren Bonner, DOTmed News Online Editor | July 20, 2012
From the July 2012 issue of HealthCare Business News magazine
“That goes into their performance score and will start to form that pool that everyone will be a part of. Hospitals will either gain or lose reimbursement based on how they are performing on all 12 clinical processes of care measures,” says Fox.
New Medicare rules that went into effect in early 2011 already require hospitals to report infections or pay a penalty.
In addition, reductions in payments will happen in 2015, based on any acquired condition. Regardless of whether it’s an HAI or a blood clot as a result of surgery, the hospital will have to eat that cost.
Although well-intended, some experts have mixed feeling about the new rules.
Xenex PX-UV Disinfection System
“It’s good for our cause in that it raises awareness and leadership roles, but it could have unintended consequences and it’s really hard to link hand washing all the way through,” says Dr. Lisa Maragakis, senior hospital epidemiologist and director of hospital epidemiology and infection control at Johns Hopkins Hospital.
HRA’s study results show that hand washing as well as isolating and monitoring Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (or “superbugs”), were hospitals’ biggest focus as far as controlling infection. Specifically, the study found that 94 percent of hospitals already had hand washing initiatives in place.
But companies like AeroScout believe technologies that can monitor compliance are the only way to reduce HAIs and comply with what’s in store under health care reform.
“It shows the Joint Commission that they have a program and what those compliance rates are,” says Miller.
The data accrued from the systems can also help management see where certain areas in a health care facility might have low compliance rates, and what staffing or workflow changes might be necessary.
“You can see we have problems on Wednesday nights on this particular floor. And people start to look at the process and they see that every Wednesday evening these guys get flooded with 20 to 30 surgeries. It’s not that staff don’t want to wash their hands, it’s probably that they are just running ragged with too many demands,” says Miller.
