1. Hospital-acquired morbidity on a neurology service.
- Author
-
Shafer SQ, Brust JC, Healton EB, and Mayo JB
- Subjects
- Hospitals, University statistics & numerical data, Hospitals, Urban statistics & numerical data, Humans, Incidence, Morbidity, New York City epidemiology, Pneumonia epidemiology, Pressure Ulcer epidemiology, Prospective Studies, Cross Infection epidemiology, Hospital Departments statistics & numerical data
- Abstract
Clinical services must monitor hospital-acquired morbidity, but what rates are expected specifically for neurology inpatients is not evident from published studies. We studied prospectively 1317 consecutive admissions to a neurology service in a university-affiliated city hospital from 1987 to 1990 and recorded all nosocomial infections, nosocomial pneumonia, and decubitus ulcers of stage III or IV. Over the 3-year period, 6.8% of patients had > or = 1 nosocomial infection (and almost half of these had a nosocomial bloodstream infection); 3.1% had > or = 1 case of nosocomial pneumonia; 1.2% developed severe decubitus ulcers, and 8.4% had one or more of the three complications. The incidence of nosocomial infection exceeds that expected from multihospital studies. How much of the excess is peculiar to neurology patients and how much can be attributed to factors in our community and at our hospital cannot be determined from this study. Furthermore, our statistics are not meant as norms, but as initial estimates for quality assurance.
- Published
- 1993