Your right to learn infection rates at Ohio hospitals survives bid to stop it in legislature.by Harlan Spector/Plain Dealer Reporter
Friday December 19, 2008, 12:51 PM
Ohio hospitals will be required to report infection information to consumers, despite an attempt by the Ohio Hospital Association to stop it.
The hospital group had tried to push through legislation that would curtail recommendations for public reporting of patient care. The Hospital Measures Advisory Council, created by a 2006 law, recommended hospitals disclose common infections, and whether facilities are vigilant about hand-washing and other practices that reduce infection risk. Earlier this month, Springboro Republican Rep. Shannon Jones introduced an amendment that would invalidate much of the council's work. The amendment, attached to an unrelated Senate bill, passed in the House Health Committee. But both the House and the Senate struck it this week after the Ohio health director and others complained that it undermined efforts to inform Ohio consumers.
The advisory council spent 13 months on the reporting requirements, which are groundbreaking for Ohio. Hospitals everywhere face growing demand for accountability of their clinical care and infection rates. Under the plan, hospitals will report on a consumer Web site data on surgical wound infections, antibiotic-resistant staph and clostridium difficile (C. diff), a type of intestinal infection that has risen sharply in recent years. "I am thrilled the work of the Hospital Measures Advisory Council can continue unhampered," Ohio Health Director Dr. Alvin Jackson said in a prepared statement Thursday. The reporting measures "truly provide Ohioans with the information they want and need to make an informed decision on where to receive care," he said. Reporting is expected to start in 2009 and be available on the Web starting in January 2010, the health department said. It first goes through a health department rule-making process. A hospital association spokeswoman said the group is looking forward to working with the health department and advisory panel. Officials said some minor changes the hospital group sought were maintained in the legislation. But the controversial elements are gone, said state Sen. Kirk Schuring, a Canton Republican and member of the advisory panel. The attempt to thwart the reporting measures "violated the integrity of the good work of the Hospital Measures Advisory Council," he said.
Friday December 19, 2008, 12:51 PM
Ohio hospitals will be required to report infection information to consumers, despite an attempt by the Ohio Hospital Association to stop it.
The hospital group had tried to push through legislation that would curtail recommendations for public reporting of patient care. The Hospital Measures Advisory Council, created by a 2006 law, recommended hospitals disclose common infections, and whether facilities are vigilant about hand-washing and other practices that reduce infection risk. Earlier this month, Springboro Republican Rep. Shannon Jones introduced an amendment that would invalidate much of the council's work. The amendment, attached to an unrelated Senate bill, passed in the House Health Committee. But both the House and the Senate struck it this week after the Ohio health director and others complained that it undermined efforts to inform Ohio consumers.
The advisory council spent 13 months on the reporting requirements, which are groundbreaking for Ohio. Hospitals everywhere face growing demand for accountability of their clinical care and infection rates. Under the plan, hospitals will report on a consumer Web site data on surgical wound infections, antibiotic-resistant staph and clostridium difficile (C. diff), a type of intestinal infection that has risen sharply in recent years. "I am thrilled the work of the Hospital Measures Advisory Council can continue unhampered," Ohio Health Director Dr. Alvin Jackson said in a prepared statement Thursday. The reporting measures "truly provide Ohioans with the information they want and need to make an informed decision on where to receive care," he said. Reporting is expected to start in 2009 and be available on the Web starting in January 2010, the health department said. It first goes through a health department rule-making process. A hospital association spokeswoman said the group is looking forward to working with the health department and advisory panel. Officials said some minor changes the hospital group sought were maintained in the legislation. But the controversial elements are gone, said state Sen. Kirk Schuring, a Canton Republican and member of the advisory panel. The attempt to thwart the reporting measures "violated the integrity of the good work of the Hospital Measures Advisory Council," he said.
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