Hospital Infections Attorneys

Pennsylvania - New Jersey - Delaware - New York - Nationwide

Thousands of patients each year contract serious infections – often fatal – while they are hospitalized or treated at other health care facilities.

In a 2006 Pennsylvania survey it was reported that 19,154 patients suffered infections contracted while in hospitals, with 2,478 dying as a result of those infections.

Nationally, a study released in October 2007 found that an estimated 94,360 patients annually in the United States develop an invasive infection and nearly one in five, or 18,650, die as a result. The number of deaths exceeds those caused by HIV/AIDS or homicides each year.

If you or someone you love contracted a hospital infection that resulted in serious illness, injury or death, you may want to contact a hospital infections attorney today.

The national study looked at cases of methacillin-resistant Staphylococcus Aureus, or MRSA, a virulent drug-resistant bacteria. It found that 85 percent of invasive infections were associated with health care treatment, including those contracted at hospitals and nursing homes. The study confirmed previous research that indicated long-term care centers are "breeding grounds" for infection. Concern has also grown that MRSA, also known as the "superbug," has spread to other community-based facilities, such as schools and gyms. Schools in Bedford County, Virginia, closed after a student there died of a staph infection. (Full story.)

Hospitals are also seeing an increase in the infection Clostridium difficile, known as C-diff, which can cause severe intestinal illnesses. In one study, hospitals reported a greater incidence of C-diff than MRSA. And C-diff, which is also resistant to many antibiotics, is spread by feces spores that are impervious to most conventional cleaners and even alcohol-based hand sanitizers that can eliminate MRSA threats. Although MRSA is generally considered more dangerous because it can prove fatal, recent reports note that a more dangerous, and sometimes fatal, form of C-diff has emerged in the last decade. (Learn more about C-diff)

The national study included 168 hospitals and was conducted by the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council, an independent state agency, and included 1.6 million patient hospitalizations. The survey looked at four types of hospital infections. They were bloodstream infections from IVs, ventilator-associated pneumonia, urinary tract infections from catheters and infections at surgical sites. (Click here to read an article about the survey.)

The survey looked at four types of hospital infections. They were bloodstream infections from IVs, ventilator-associated pneumonia, urinary tract infections from catheters and infections at surgical sites.

The council's executive director, Marc P. Volavka, was quoted in The Philadelphia Inquirer as saying that "every patient that enters a hospital is at risk for a hospital-acquired infection. He said such infections are the result of "flawed processes" of care and hygiene. Indeed, a major cause of infection was noted as poor hand washing by hospital personnel.

Kline & Specter, P.C. is based in Philadelphia and has some 30 attorneys, several of whom are also experienced doctors. The law firm has had success litigating medical malpractice lawsuits in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and nationwide. (See our Major Victories.) For a free evaluation of your case, contact a hospital infection lawyer today for a free evaluation of your case.

Kline & Specter handles cases in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York and Nationwide, working with local attorneys in states outside PA, NJ and NY.

In Pennsylvania, Kline & Specter handles cases in and around: Allentown, Altoona, Bethlehem, Chester, Doylestown, Drexel Hill, Easton, Erie, Greensburg, Harrisburg, Hazleton, Johnstown, Lancaster, Levittown, McCandless, McKeesport, Monroeville, Norristown, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Pottstown, Radnor, Reading, Scranton, State College, West Chester, Wilkes-Barre, Williamsport and York.

In New Jersey, the firm handles cases in and around: Atlantic City, Bayonne, Brick Township, Camden, Cherry Hill, Clifton, Edison, Elizabeth, Fort Lee, Jersey City, Lakewood, Millville, Newark, New Brunswick, Paterson, Pennsauken, Plainfield, Toms River, Trenton, Union, Vineland, Voorhees and Willingboro.

• Tom Kline on hospital errors, KYW-AM 8/20/07(Listen to Clip)