Hospital Acquired Infections

Jennifer Mathews: As a freshman, Jenna Edmondson started on her high school varsity soccer team, an accomplishment virtually unheard of. Tami Edmondson: Jenna's nickname is Dozer which stands for bulldozer, and she's very, very tough. Today, Jenna's opponent is not one she's used to. Harley is a stand-in for a dream she'll never reach. Jenna Edmondson: I wanted my whole life to play soccer in the future. Now I know that it's pretty much gone, so that's really hard for me to do. Jennifer Mathews: After tearing her ACL, Jenna went to the hospital for a routine outpatient knee surgery. It should have put her back on the field. Instead, she left the hospital with a bone and flesh-eating infection from a germ called Pseudomonas. Jenna Edmondson: I didn't understand how I can get infection from the hospital because you go there to get healed and for them to help you. Jennifer Mathews: Two million people go to the hospital each year to be healed and instead, develop an infection. Yet, only two states Illinois and Pennsylvania require hospitals to disclose their infection rates. Earl Lui from the Consumers Union hopes to change that. Earl Lui: We're working on legislation in many different states to require hospitals to collect and report data on hospital-acquired infections. Jennifer Mathews: Really recently introduced a bill at the California State Capitol. Earl Lui: The reporting of this data, brings the problem out in the open and will encourage hospitals to improve their performance because it creates accountability. Jennifer Mathews: Opponents of the bill include doctors like Stanford’s Lucy Tompkins. Dr. Lucy Tompkins: Our case-mix if you will, is much different from our local community hospitals here. So our infection rates are by nature going to be higher than they are in the community hospital. Jennifer Mathews: Most experts don't argue with that, but Earl says they've got that covered. Earl Lui: We want to compare apples to apples, oranges to oranges, and in order to do that, we can adjust the data to account for differences in the population that hospital serve. Jennifer Mathews: Others oppose the bill because of the cost. Lucy Tompkins: In this time of very, very tight finances for hospitals, this is another regulation in a sea of regulations and another unfunded mandate. Jennifer Mathews: But many believe disclosing this data will make hospitals perform better and reduce costly infections. Jenna has changed her dreams, but she can't forget what might have been. Jenna Edmondson: It's just really hard not to play. So I try to distance myself as much as I can from soccer. It's hard to watch it. Jennifer Mathews: She believes if states across the country adopt the legislation, it will save others from unnecessary illnesses like hers. This is Jennifer Mathews reporting.