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  Awards Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Ctr. Boston Medical Center Boston University Brigham and Women's Hospital Broad Institute Cambridge Health Alliance Caritas St. Elizabeth's Medical Ctr. Children's Hospital Boston Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Grants Harvard University Joslin Diabetes Center Lahey Clinic Mass. General Hospital Mass. Health Law McLean Hospital MIT New England Baptist Hospital Personnel Moves Public Health Research Short White Coat Tufts-New England Medical Center Tufts University UMass Memorial Medical Center University of Massachusetts VA Medical Centers    A Healthy Blog Running A Hospital Nature Network Boston SciBos - Corie Lok's blog Kevin, M.D. Blog, MD Dr. Flea's blog Nurse at small Your Child's Health Blog Healthy Children blog WBUR's CommonHealth Other Globe Blogs
Elizabeth Cooney is a health reporter for the Worcester Telegram &
Gazette.
Boston Globe Health and Science staff:
Scott Allen Alice Dembner Carey Goldberg Liz Kowalczyk Stephen Smith Colin Nickerson Beth Daley Karen Weintraub, Deputy Health and Science Editor, and Gideon Gil, Health and Science Editor. Short White Coat blogger Ishani Ganguli  |
« Today's Globe: Weis witness, heart disease by state, avian flu tests on birds | Main | Springfield hospital proposes expansion » Friday, February 16, 2007Levy issues challenge on infection ratesBeth Israel Deaconess Medical Center CEO Paul Levy says better infection control practices likely saved one life at his hospital in January, and on his blog today he challenged other hospitals and health insurers to share their numbers too. Levy posted his hospital's monthly rate of central line infections going back to October 2005, a theme first visited in December. A central line is the opening through which a tube delivers medications directly into a patient's bloodstream. An infection can travel this route quickly, causing organ failure. He urged others to go public with their rates, and the state to make public rates too, arguing that disclosure leads to better results. "If I can post these rates for BIDMC, why can't people from other hospitals? Cleve, Charlie, and Jim: Why can't the insurance companies (Blue Cross, Harvard Pilgrim, and Tufts) post them? Governor Patrick and Secretary Bigby: Why can't the state of Massachusetts?" Posted by Elizabeth Cooney at 09:02 AM
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