kmguru
Staff member
Australia blacklisted for hospital hygeine
The World Today - Friday, November 1, 2002 12:45
ELEANOR HALL: Back home now, to a damming assessment of Australian hospitals by The World Health Organisation. In its latest World Health Report, the WHO has pinpoints what it calls the "alarmingly high" risks posed to patients in Australian hospitals and other health care institutions.
According to the World Health Report 2002 almost 17 per cent of patients suffer "measurable" harm while undergoing unrelated treatment in health care facilities.
That figure is well ahead of the next-highest nations on the list, the United Kingdom and Denmark where the risk is assessed at 10 percent and the United States where the risk factor is less than 4 percent.
Nick Grimm reports.
NICK GRIMM: The World Health Organisation has produced a report which argues that basic improvement in health care could boost the average lifespan of the world's population by five to 10 years.
Most of its concerns are focussed on health problems in the third world. But it appears that even a wealthy and relatively healthy first world nation like Australia needs to lift its game.
The WHO has found Australia has the world's highest rate of "measurable harm" to patients in the health care system.
That is, the illnesses and injuries that occur to patients already in hospital for treatment for unrelated conditions.
Human error, faulty medical products, drug overdoses and plain bad procedures are all credited with making one in six patients sicker than they were already.
BARRY CATCHLOVE: Well if you look at the total number of admissions to hospitals in a year, you use the figure that's quoted in the report, of over 16 per cent, you're looking at approximately 1 million adversaries a year.
NICK GRIMM: Dr Barry Catchlove is a former chief executive of the Royal Children's Hospital in Melbourne and is now the chairman of the Healthcare Risk Resources International, a company specialising in risk management programs for the health sector.
BARRY CATCHLOVE: I think its wrong to get into a debate about whether the figure is 16 per cent or 14 per cent or 12 per cent, because even if you halved it and said 8 per cent was the figure we ought to be saying it's too high and we ought to be doing something about it.
NICK GRIMM: But other experts criticise the figures used by the World Health Organisation.
Professor Bruce Barraclough is the chairman of the Australian Council for Safety and Quality in Health Care, a body established by state and federal health ministers to make the nation's health system safer.
BRUCE BARRACLOUGH: What they're doing is that they are reporting the numbers that come out of some published papers, each of which was put together using different methodology, asking different questions for different reasons.
Wheat they say is, that yes there is a number of adverse events in any health system and the more complex the things that you're doing, the more chance there is that there's a problem that can occur and the more vigilant you need to be to stop that from happening.
NICK GRIMM: Meanwhile, Federal Health Minister Kay Patterson admits our hospitals and health institutions do pose risks to patients.
KAY PATTERSON: Well, I've welcomed the report and it underpins the Government's key message on preventative health and it highlights the potential for prevention.
NICK GRIMM: Is the situation alarming as the World Health Organisation says it is?
KAY PATTERSON: Well, I'm not sure alarming would be the word I'd use, but it's salutary.
NICK GRIMM: OK, now some health experts are today saying that even if the figure was half the 16 per cent or 17 per cent sited by the World Health Organisation that that's still too high. Now do you need to take more direct action to bring that figure down?
KAY PATTERSON: Let me just say that we have set up the Australian Council of Safety and Quality in Health Care, chaired by Professor Barraclough.
That committee is doing tremendous work. It's reporting regularly to the health ministers and each state health minister also is taking responsibility for ensuring that adverse reactions, or adverse events in Australian hospitals are reduced as much as possible.
But I think we shouldn't alarm the public, I think we have to make sure that we look at the data very carefully, we have systems in place to reduce adverse events and also that some of the figures comparing us with other countries are based on different figures.
It's comparing apples and oranges rather than apples with apples.
Transcripts on this website are created by an independent transcription service. The ABC does not warrant the accuracy of the transcripts. ABC Online users are advised to listen to the audio provided on this page to verify the accuracy of the transcripts.
The World Today - Friday, November 1, 2002 12:45
ELEANOR HALL: Back home now, to a damming assessment of Australian hospitals by The World Health Organisation. In its latest World Health Report, the WHO has pinpoints what it calls the "alarmingly high" risks posed to patients in Australian hospitals and other health care institutions.
According to the World Health Report 2002 almost 17 per cent of patients suffer "measurable" harm while undergoing unrelated treatment in health care facilities.
That figure is well ahead of the next-highest nations on the list, the United Kingdom and Denmark where the risk is assessed at 10 percent and the United States where the risk factor is less than 4 percent.
Nick Grimm reports.
NICK GRIMM: The World Health Organisation has produced a report which argues that basic improvement in health care could boost the average lifespan of the world's population by five to 10 years.
Most of its concerns are focussed on health problems in the third world. But it appears that even a wealthy and relatively healthy first world nation like Australia needs to lift its game.
The WHO has found Australia has the world's highest rate of "measurable harm" to patients in the health care system.
That is, the illnesses and injuries that occur to patients already in hospital for treatment for unrelated conditions.
Human error, faulty medical products, drug overdoses and plain bad procedures are all credited with making one in six patients sicker than they were already.
BARRY CATCHLOVE: Well if you look at the total number of admissions to hospitals in a year, you use the figure that's quoted in the report, of over 16 per cent, you're looking at approximately 1 million adversaries a year.
NICK GRIMM: Dr Barry Catchlove is a former chief executive of the Royal Children's Hospital in Melbourne and is now the chairman of the Healthcare Risk Resources International, a company specialising in risk management programs for the health sector.
BARRY CATCHLOVE: I think its wrong to get into a debate about whether the figure is 16 per cent or 14 per cent or 12 per cent, because even if you halved it and said 8 per cent was the figure we ought to be saying it's too high and we ought to be doing something about it.
NICK GRIMM: But other experts criticise the figures used by the World Health Organisation.
Professor Bruce Barraclough is the chairman of the Australian Council for Safety and Quality in Health Care, a body established by state and federal health ministers to make the nation's health system safer.
BRUCE BARRACLOUGH: What they're doing is that they are reporting the numbers that come out of some published papers, each of which was put together using different methodology, asking different questions for different reasons.
Wheat they say is, that yes there is a number of adverse events in any health system and the more complex the things that you're doing, the more chance there is that there's a problem that can occur and the more vigilant you need to be to stop that from happening.
NICK GRIMM: Meanwhile, Federal Health Minister Kay Patterson admits our hospitals and health institutions do pose risks to patients.
KAY PATTERSON: Well, I've welcomed the report and it underpins the Government's key message on preventative health and it highlights the potential for prevention.
NICK GRIMM: Is the situation alarming as the World Health Organisation says it is?
KAY PATTERSON: Well, I'm not sure alarming would be the word I'd use, but it's salutary.
NICK GRIMM: OK, now some health experts are today saying that even if the figure was half the 16 per cent or 17 per cent sited by the World Health Organisation that that's still too high. Now do you need to take more direct action to bring that figure down?
KAY PATTERSON: Let me just say that we have set up the Australian Council of Safety and Quality in Health Care, chaired by Professor Barraclough.
That committee is doing tremendous work. It's reporting regularly to the health ministers and each state health minister also is taking responsibility for ensuring that adverse reactions, or adverse events in Australian hospitals are reduced as much as possible.
But I think we shouldn't alarm the public, I think we have to make sure that we look at the data very carefully, we have systems in place to reduce adverse events and also that some of the figures comparing us with other countries are based on different figures.
It's comparing apples and oranges rather than apples with apples.
Transcripts on this website are created by an independent transcription service. The ABC does not warrant the accuracy of the transcripts. ABC Online users are advised to listen to the audio provided on this page to verify the accuracy of the transcripts.