Good news! A recent study conducted by the Health and Human Services department of the federal government recently found that U.S. hospitals have decreased the amount of deadly mistakes by 17% from 2010-2013 http://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-hospitals-making-fewer-deadly-errors/. These deadly errors include hospital-acquired infections, drug mistakes, bed sores, and others. http://www.cbsnews.com/news/surgical-complications-and-errors-bring-in-more-money-for-hospitals/ The findings of this study are wonderful for patients, their families, and all healthcare professionals who want the best possible outcome for their patients.
Everyone who works on HEDIS—Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set—would love to see more encouraging studies like this one. HEDIS workers collect data about many different aspects of the healthcare industry and compare it to previous years’ performance as well as other organizations’ data. The research and analysis of this information is incredibly important to spur progress by showing organizations and doctors where they need to improve. When healthcare data improves, patients end up healthier and happier. The federal study mentioned above found that 50,000 fewer patients died in hospitals. Plus hospitals, other healthcare organizations, governments, and patients end up spending a lot less money on healthcare, too—the federal review cited that because of the 17% decrease in preventable deadly errors, $12 billion in healthcare costs was saved. More lives saved and less money spent? Sounds like the perfect win-win.
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