AORN Journal
Volume 86, Issue 2 , Pages 249-258, August 2007

The Not-So-Hidden Costs of Surgical Site Infections

  • Todd E. Barnett, RN, MBA

      Affiliations

    • Todd E. Barnett, RN, MBA, is a clinical sales representative at LifeSync Corp, Ft Lauderdale, FL. He was the administrative director for surgical services at St Francis Medical Center, Midlothian, VA, at the time this article was written.

ABSTRACT 

SURGICAL SITE INFECTIONS (SSIs) adversely affect approximately 500,000 patients annually, causing immense human suffering and taking a huge financial toll on patients, hospitals, insurance companies, and the government.

NATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS have made recommendations for reducing SSIs, and many advances have been made in evidence-based practice recommendations that result in fewer SSIs.

REUSABLE ELECTROCARDIOGRAM (ECG) lead wires can be a significant source of infection. One medical center near Richmond, VA, began using a disposable ECG lead wire set and wireless transceiver system and subsequently experienced a 40% decrease in SSIs. AORN J 86 (August 2007) 249-258. © AORN, Inc, 2007.

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PII: S0001-2092(07)00031-2

doi:10.1016/j.aorn.2007.03.012

AORN Journal
Volume 86, Issue 2 , Pages 249-258, August 2007

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