Intro to Population Health & Informatics (PH&I)

We would like to introduce ourselves before informing you of our goal and the value of what we do. We are Population Health & Informatics, which was began about a year ago, by medical researcher, Kendrick Williams, MSHI. He obtained a bachelor’s degree in health administration and analytics and a master’s degree in health informatics, so he has perfected different forms of research and methodologies used to obtain primary and secondary data. Services offered by Population Health & Informatics include data analyses, research, speech writing, PowerPoint presentations, project management planning, data visualizations, healthy living coaching to extend life expectancies, data migration, PICOT analysis, workflow optimization, usability feedback about electronic health records (EHR), extracting/transforming/loading (ETL) data, and methodologies. The goal of PH&I is to help extend life expectancies by providing updated information to patients, as well as to medical care facilities which will reduce the amount of HAIs that recur.

What are HAIs

HAIs, an abbreviation for hospital-acquired infections, are also called healthcare associated infections (HCAIs), and nosocomial infections. They are defined as being morbidities (illnesses) that a patient gains while in a place of care (Maddox, 2023; Definitive Healthcare, 2023; Health Care-Acquired Infections (HAIs), n.d.; Gidey, 2023). There are different types of HAIs which will be elaborated on later, but before causing confusion, a clarification needs to be made: An HAI is classified as an HAI if the diagnosis happens within the first 48 hours after the patient is admitted into the place of care. If it happens anytime after the first 48 hours, it is considered a community-acquired illness.

The types of HAIs are staph infections, central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI), catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI), surgical-site infections (SSI), ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP), and methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Staph itself may not cause harm but it can cause infections in the bloodstream, which can be fatal. Central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs) come from the central line tube becoming infected. The central line is used for providing fluid or measuring fluid amounts in a body. If it is not inserted correctly, or maintained properly, bacteria can enter the tube, compromising the safety of the patient (Definitive Healthcare, 2023; Health care-associated infections (HAIs). Catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) affect the urinary system, including the urethra, bladder, kidneys, and ureters. CAUTIs come from urinary catheters that are inserted to help urinate. They can gain bacteria while being inserted in a patient which puts the patient at a high risk. Surgical site infections, or SSIs are infections that take place wherever the patient received the surgery at. Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) is the condition that develops when a ventilator which helps someone breathe, becomes infected. Methicillin-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), unlike the others listed, comes from contaminated hands and not changing gloves, contaminated medical devices that are inserted, and can come from a wound (Health care associated infections (HAIs)).

Wherever you seek care, you are at risk of getting an HAI. The patient populations most likely to experience an HAI include children, elderly patients, pregnant women, and patients who are immunocompromised (Health care-associated infections (HAI)). Data provided by Health care associated infections (HAIs) disclose that patients who get an HAI risk an elongation of inpatient care for up to 6.5 days. For the cost of care, patients who acquired an HAI paid an average of $54.02 in care costs more than those who did not get an HAI (Gidey, 2023). In the U.S., the estimate for treating HAIs annually can be between 28.4 billion to as high as 45 billion! Data from CDC reveals that HAIs are causal to 1.7 million infections and ~ 99,000 deaths. Maddox (2023) shares that HAIs are the fourth leading cause of death in America, and is the main cause of a preventable death.

Some recommendations to decrease HAIs include regularly washing hands, changing gloves; catheters being used and removed in a timely manner; cleaning the skin properly, and wearing the right equipment. In 2015, CMS tried to prevent poor quality care by passing the HAC Payment Reduction Program, where care facilities have their payment reduced by 1%. According to Definitive Healthcare (2023), some care facilities have their payment reduced every year. On a list provided by Definitive Healthcare, the three states with the highest HAI mortality rates were California (8997), New York (6776), and Texas (6449), in order from greatest to least, respectively.

If health care facilities would like to take action to prevent or possibly end their recurring HAIs, they can contact us at www.ph-and-i.com.

References

Definitive Healthcare (2023). Most hospital-acquired infections and conditions by state Https://www.definitivehc.com/blog/hospital-acquired-infections-by-state/

Gidey, K. (2023, February 23). Clinical and economic burden of healthcare associated infections: A prospective cohort study. PloS one, 18(2), e0282141 Https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0282141

Health care-acquired infections (HAIs). Https://www.patientcarelink.org/improving-patient-care-healthcare-acquired-infections-hais/#:~:text

Maddox, W. (2023, June). Hospital infections are on the rise. How do DFW hospitals compare Https://www.dmagazine.com/healthcare-business/2023/06/hospital-infections-are-on-the-rise-how-do-dfw-hospitals-compare/