Roughly a quarter of Americans with disabilities age 65 and older reported using at least one prescription drug deemed inappropriate for persons their age, according to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Only about half as many of elderly people without disabilities used inappropriate drugs, according to the analysis.
Using the Internet, patients can now make sure the medical professionals they are seeing, or considering, are licensed, find out if they have board certification in their specialties, see quality ratings for the hospitals where they practice, get feedback from their patients, and weigh in with their own opinions. Some Web sites, including RateMDs.com and healthgrades.com, are also trying to get at such hard-to-measure issues by collecting patient ratings and asking them to share experiences.
MRSA strains are increasingly infecting people in Georgia, even outside of healthcare settings. In Georgia, more than 1,700 people have been hospitalized in the past three years with severe MRSA infections, according to reports filed with the state health department. At least 62 have died, including several children with a deadly form of MRSA pneumonia.
No official statistics are kept on how many Americans travel overseas for medical care, but one estimate places the number at 150,000 in 2006. In response, a medical tourism industry has grown to facilitate global health travel. A trade association to represent these companies formed last year, and a major insurer started a separate company to help members seek international care.
Some physicians and consumer advocates worry that a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling and a pending case could take away the legal aspect of patient safety when it comes to medical devices and pharmaceuticals. Justices ruled earlier this year that patients injured by certain medical devices approved by the Food and Drug Administration cannot sue the product's manufacturer. The court said federal regulations preempt state-based liability claims challenging the design or labeling of medical devices that clear the FDA's approval process.
Since Carole Moss's son died from a drug-resistant staph infection in 2006, she has lobbied tirelessly to change the laws governing the reporting of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus. Moss believes her son caught the bacterium after undergoing a series of hospital tests for a condition he was born with. Her concern is growing among lawmakers, insurance companies and hospital administrators as they tackle the deadly and expensive problem of hospital-acquired infections.