UK Hospital gets below average marks on patient satisfaction, infections; data on your local hospital are available online

Despite $900 million being invested in expanding the University of Kentucky Chandler Hospital, its patients at do not seem all that happy with the care they receive there.

In an op-ed piece in the Lexington Herald-Leader, Dr. Kevin Kavanagh of Somerset highlights the results of a survey on patients' hospital experiences. That survey ranked UK's hospital below state and national averages in nine of 10 measures. "Especially disturbing, only 66 percent said they would definitely recommend the institution, and only 56 percent stated their room and bathroom were 'always clean'," writes Kavanagh, chairman of Health Watch USA.

The UK hospital also did not fare well when it came to its assessment by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services on hospital-acquired conditions. "UK had the highest reported rate of deadly vascular catheter infections in the state," Kavanagh writes. "UK also had an unacceptably high rate of falls and deep bed ulcers. These latter conditions should be zero."

Kavanagh concluded, "If there are quality problems at UK, it is of paramount importance that they are corrected since not only current patients are at risk but also the quality of the training experience of our future clinicians, which can affect care for years to come." (Read more)

Newspapers can access information about their area hospitals by clicking here. Viewers can choose up to three hospitals and see how they compare to one another in categories like: how well nurses communicate with patients; how quiet the areas around patients are; if patients would recommend the hospital; and if patients always received help as soon as it was wanted.

Newspapers can also see the results of the CMS assessment on hospital-acquired conditions for their area hospitals by clicking here and downloading the Hospital-Acquired Condition Rates zip file (scroll down to Kentucky hospitals). The file contains data on eight hospital-acquired conditions reported between Oct. 1, 2008 and June 30, 2010. Among the conditions reported are air embolism; blood incompatibility; catheter-associated infections; falls and trauma; foreign objects left in the body after surgery; pressure ulcers; uncontrolled blood sugar levels; and urinary tract infections.

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CDC hands out $49 million in public health grants; Kentucky gets more than $800k

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have issued $49 million in grants to improve public health, $815,000 of which is earmarked for Kentucky.

The Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services will use the funds to expand its epidemiology, lab and health information systems and to detect and prevent healthcare associated infections. Each year, about 100,000 people die nationwide because of these infections, which are often acquired in hospital settings. The funds are meant to help states coordinate HAI prevention, implement multi-facility prevention efforts, improve monitoring of antimicrobial use and enhance electronic reporting.

Every state in the country will receive a portion of the $49 million pot, which is double the size that was handed out in 2010. "This funding will be used to create jobs, enabling the hiring and training of epidemiologists, laboratory scientists and health information specialists in the field of infectious diseases," said Thomas Frieden, director at the CDC. "These grants will also make it easier for health departments to better manage and exchange important information." (Read more)

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