“Dangerous and often deadly cases of healthcare-associated clostridium difficile bacteria infections were almost double estimates in 2011, a new report has found, adding new urgency for health systems to change practices to avoid an epidemic or steep financial penalties. Clostridium difficile, or C. diff caused 453,000 infections in 2011 and …
PLF hopes that that this new, more comprehensive assessment of C. diff’s impact will spark much greater attention to this disease. Increased public awareness about C. diff’s prevalence, risk factors, prevention and treatment is crucial so Americans can make informed decisions and seek help early. We must also translate that awareness into tangible policy changes that we know will save lives. That’s why we advocate for robust antibiotic stewardship, sanitation and hand hygiene programs at every health care facility; mandatory public reporting in every state; and increased public and private investment in both prevention and treatments.
“Life-threatening infections caused by bacteria called Clostridium difficile now sicken nearly half a million Americans a year, health officials said Wednesday… Christian John Lillis says his mother died from C. diff in 2010 just a few days after taking an antibiotic related to a root canal surgery. She was 56. …
“Overuse of antibiotics made Americans more vulnerable to a strain of bacteria that caused nearly half a million infections and contributed to at least 29,000 deaths in a single year, U.S. public health officials warned in a study published on Wednesday… In 2010, for example, Brooklyn teacher Peggy Lillis, 56, …
Following the recent public health scares of Ebola and, more recently, measles, you would think that our public officials would be encouraging increased observance of hand washing and other measures known to prevent infection. Well, in the case of newly election North Carolina Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC), you’d be wrong. …
