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D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 4 | O U T P AT I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E O N L I N E
W
e all know that a surgical site infection exacts a
heavy toll on our patients, who are subjected to
months of antibiotic therapy, readmission, reop-
erations and extended physical therapy. But SSIs
aren't just painful for patients. Treating them is
also costly for your facility, especially those of us working in hospi-
tals. Under terms of the Affordable Care Act, CMS will stop paying
hospitals for the follow-up care of infections they deem preventable.
Yes, first and foremost, reducing SSIs is about protecting patients
from harm, but there's no denying the financial impact. To prove that
investing in preventative measures would pay for itself in the long run
here at the Iowa City VA Healthcare System, I set out to identify how
much it really costs to treat infections. An awful lot, as it turns out. For
a study I co-authored in JAMA Surgery (
tinyurl.com/khonvrc)
, I found
that preventing SSIs during procedures performed in high-volume spe-
cialties could save hospitals in the Veterans Affairs health system more
than $13 million annually in follow-up care costs. Let me share with
you what our findings mean to your facility.
Significant savings
Our review of 55,000 patients who underwent high-volume procedures
in 129 VA acute care facilities revealed 3.2% experienced an SSI. That
percentage is in line with national averages — the literature says SSI
rates typically range from 2% to 5% — but like many infection control
experts, I'd like that rate to be zero.
I N F E C T I O N C O N T R O L
Preventing post-op infections is more
cost-effective than treating them.
Marin L. Schweizer, PhD | Iowa City, Iowa
