A recent article in the Seattle Times reported on the infection rate at local hospitals, citing the ones with the highest and lowest risk for infection.
The report identified Swedish Medical Center's Cherry Hill campus as having the lowest overall rating for avoiding infections and the University of Washington and Harborview medical center as not achieving the top ratings in Consumer Reports' latest rankings.
The Consumer Reports rankings examined infections, including C. diff and MRSA as well as surgical site infections.
However, it's well-known that ambulatory surgery centers typically have lower infection and complication risks for several reasons. There are only otherwise-healthy patients at the center, and patients stay at the ASC for less than 24 hours. There are also infection control techniques that make a big difference.
At his surgery center in Puyallup, Wash., Richard Wohns, MD, reports less than 0.5 percent infection rate. If possible, surgery in an outpatient center can be an excellent option for quality of care as well as cost-effectiveness. ASCs typically have a lower overall cost than hospitals.