Approximately one-fifth of skilled nursing facility Medicare patients, 22 percent, experienced at least one adverse event during their stay at a nursing home, according to a study by the HHS Office of the Inpector General analyzing data from 653 Medicare patients from more than 600 SNFs in August 2011.
Here are eight more statistics on adverse events at skilled nursing homes.
1. Of the patients experiencing adverse events, 79 percent had
an extended length-of-stay, were transferred to another post-acute facility or were readmitted to the hospital due to the event.
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2. Six percent of patients who experienced an adverse event died.
3. Thirty-seven percent of the adverse events were related to medication errors.
4. Thirty-seven percent were related to matters of ongoing care.
5. Twenty-six percent were related to infections.
6. Physicians reviewing the data said 59 percent of these adverse events were likely or clearly preventable. They said 37 percent were not preventable.
7. Sixty-six percent of the preventable adverse events were related to medication errors, 57 percent were related to matters of ongoing care and 52 percent were related to infection control.
8. Of the preventable events, physicians deemed appropriate treatment was administered in a substandard way 56 percent of the time.
Analysis suggests the total cost of adverse events resulting in hospital readmissions cost Medicare approximately $208 million.
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