A high infection rate at AIIMS revealed under RTI
26 May, 2012A reply to an application filed under the Right to Information (RTI) Act has revealed startling figures of infections at the Jayaprakash Narayan Apex Trauma Centre of All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). The figures show that:
- The blood stream infection (BSI) rate is 7.5/1000,
- Ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) 20.3/1000 ventilator days, and
- Surgical site infection (SSI) 2.5/1000 catheter days.
It has also come to notice that there are no set standards to declare a percentage of infection rate as bad or good. Infections usually develop if the central venous catheters are not placed or maintained using sterile conditions. It is time that the AIIMS and other hospitals in the country should devise a standard and keep the hospital acquired infection rate to near zero.