Hospitals fight to stem infections

They are the latest weapons in an age-old battle: motion-sensor detectors, electronic ID badges, germ-killing robots, antimicrobial materials and “secret shoppers” who monitor hospital staff on the sly.

All are part of growing efforts by hospitals and health care chains in Houston and across the country to prevent hospital-acquired infections and to increase hand-washing, the most basic, most effective form of prevention.

The push has been spurred by the rise of drug-resistant superbugs and the rising costs of hospital-acquired infections. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that such infections lead to about 100,000 patient deaths a year and increase medical costs by about $30 billion annually.

As an added motivation, under new federal rules, Medicare would not pay for preventable infections caught in the hospital.

But at the core, hospital officials say, the prevention measures are driven by a desire to do what’s best for the patient.

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