A study in India recently showed that when patients develop a Hospital Acquired Infection (HAI) during their stay in the intensive care unit, they cause substantially higher costs. The hospital bills not only get higher because it is necessary to use more expensive drugs that can cure hard-to-treat HAIs caused by resistant organisms, but also because of investigation costs and other aspects.
Apart from that, treating a hospital-acquired infection is not ‘profitable’ for hospitals – from a business point-of-view. On the contrary, a bed that could have been given to a patient needing surgery or a therapeutic procedure stays occupied by a patient suffering from a long, avoidable illness.
Environmental contamination seems to be a predominant cause of HAIs. Research has shown that by effective housekeeping, infections caused by Multi Drug Resistant Organism (MDRO) colonisation or HAIs decreased considerably. On an average, cost ratio of clinical best care practices such as hand hygiene, hygiene and sanitation, screening, as well as basic precautions prove to be worthwhile for all stakeholders such as patients and their families, clinicians and hospital managers. In short, healthcare is hygiene-driven business!
