New Hampshire is the first state in the country in which all healthcare providers use a surgical safety checklist prior to every procedure, according to the report. Antibiotic use for infection among New Hampshire healthcare providers was 95 percent, compared with the U.S. average of 93 percent. New Hampshire was also above the national average in antibiotic use as a preventative (98 percent vs. 96 percent nationally) and clot prevention ordered (94 percent vs. 92 percent nationally).
Also, for the first time ASCs were asked to track infections from July to Dec. 2008. An infection rate of 0.25 percent, or 38 out of 15,000 surgeries, was reported. Although statically insignificant, officials from surgery centers said that they were committed to monitoring surgical site infections and sharing best practices for infection control, according to the report.
New Hampshire healthcare providers have committed to 100 percent compliance with all hand hygiene procedures, as improper hand hygiene is the most common cause of infection at hospitals and ASCs. Compliance rose from 69 percent in 2007 to 83 percent in 2008, according to the report.
Read the Telegraph’s report about above average infection control at New Hampshire hospitals and surgery centers.
Read the New Hampshire Health Care Quality Assurance Commission’s fourth annual report (pdf).
