The Department of Health and Human Services unveiled a plan Wednesday that includes healthcare information technology as a critical piece in preventing healthcare-associated infections (HAIs). The goal is to save lives and reduce healthcare costs.
The plan establishes a set of five-year national prevention targets to reduce and possibly eliminate HAIs. HAIs are acquired by patients while undergoing medical treatment or surgical procedures.
The HHS lists a number of areas in which HAIs can be prevented, such as surgical sites. The plan outlines cross-agency efforts to save lives and reduce healthcare costs through expanded HAI prevention efforts.
Much of the IT component of the HHS plan focuses on harnessing and sharing data surrounding HAIs.
"This plan will serve as our roadmap on how the department addresses this important public health and patient safety issue," HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt said. "This collaborative interagency plan will help the nation build a safer, more affordable healthcare system."
Leavitt said that in addition to the tremendous toll on human life, the financial burden attributed to these infections is staggering.
HHS' Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that approximately 1.7 million HAIs occurred in U.S. hospitals in 2002 and were associated with 99,000 deaths. CDC also estimates that HAIs add as much as $20 billion to healthcare costs each year.
The plan establishes national goals and outlines key actions for enhancing and coordinating HHS-supported efforts. These include development of national benchmarks, prioritized recommended clinical practices, a coordinated research agenda, an integrated information systems strategy and a national messaging plan.
The plan also identifies opportunities for collaboration with national, state, tribal and local organizations. HHS plans to hold meetings in the spring of 2009 to provide opportunities for public comment.