Saturday, April 12, 2014

You've Got To Spend Money To Save Money

Ever hear the saying "I never go to hospitals, that's where all the sick people are"?  I'm sure you have, a seemingly obvious saying that holds a tremendous amount of value. 1 in every 25 inpatients contract an infection from a hospital that is resistant to 1 or more of the antibiotics that are designed to combat these illnesses. The costs related directly and indirectly range between 96-147 billion nationwide. More importantly 23,000 people die each year due to these infections. Currently you will find plenty of antibacterial stations located strategically in most hospitals but leaving hygiene up to doctors and patients is simply not enough. Studies show that healthcare providers adhere to the national guidelines for hand hygiene less than 50% of the time. So how do we change this?

We leave less to chance. We change the physical surfaces within healthcare offices to something called antimicrobial copper. I know what your thinking, sounds ugly and expensive but hear me out. This material has the ability to kill bacteria associated with MRSA and e-coli along with many other illness causing germs. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) states that copper has the ability to kill 99.9% of germs within 2 hours.

The costs that go along with the replacement of railings, chairs, doorknobs, etc. range between 7-14 thousand per room.  No healthcare provider in there right mind would be willing to invest this much in refurnishing if there was no expected return. Luckily there is, based on a modest 20% reduction in infections ( compared to the 60% reduction that was demonstrated in clinical trials) these changes paid for themselves in 1 year!

Which brings us to our last issue, it's still ugly. I seem to have an answer for everything today, I like when that happens. This material is currently produced in colors red, yellow, silver, and grey. So these structures can be changed and look very similar to their previous counterparts.  Copper has been know to tarnish overtime, but with the correct alloy mixture the tarnishing effect is depleted. After installing these materials a hospital will be looking better than ever while keeping people healthy and saving a significant amount of money over time.

So everything I've written so far shows there is nothing stopping healthcare provider from making this switch. There is one small problem. Copper products made for hospitals are in low supply. One of the larger companies that have launched a product line for healthcare providers is Ingersroll Rand. I don't see this shortage of supplies being an issue for very long simply because of the way our economy works. If a lot of people need something people will start creating it. This is a great way to lower overall cost of care across the board. I foresee providers making this switch rapidly with all the pressure from the people to make care more affordable.

Evera. Everyone should feel this good about healthcare.


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