New Report: Hospitals Much Deadlier than Guns
CDC Off on Infection Deaths
About 103,000 deaths were linked to hospital infections in 2000 – a figure
14 percent higher than government estimates – and nearly 75 percent of the
deaths were preventable, the Chicago Tribune reported. The national Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention ( news – web sites) last year calculated
90,000 deaths in 2000 were linked to hospital infections, the fourth leading
cause of death in the United States behind heart disease, cancer and
strokes. Many of the deaths were caused by unsanitary facilities, germ-laden
instruments and unwashed hands, the newspaper said in early Sunday editions
distributed Saturday. According to the report, infection rates are soaring
nationally, exacerbated by hospital cutbacks and carelessness by doctors and
nurses, and serious violations of infection-control standards have been
found in the majority of hospitals.
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&ncid=514&e=7&cid=514&u=/ap/20020
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http://www.bayarea.com/mld/mercurynews/news/nation/3706597.htm