Infection correction: hospital-acquired infections can be reduced significantly or even eliminated with sound prevention procedures.

• Author: Wolke, Anna

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After surviving a motorcycle crash in 2006, David Meyer--a healthy, active man in his 50s--never guessed that the broken ankle he suffered in the crash would be the least of his worries.

He underwent surgery for his ankle, endured four more operations, an intensive antibiotic program and debilitating pain--not because of the accident, but because of the two different infections he contracted while in the hospital. He blames the infections on the hospital's failure to follow standard hygienic practices.

Now, more than two and a half years after the accident, Meyer walks with a cane, works on a limited basis, experiences pain daily, and has a stack of medical bills he can't pay.

"This has been a disaster on a level that is so much worse than my initial accident," he says. "They should have treated my original injury in the hospital that day, done some follow-up therapy, and I should have been done. Instead, it's three years later and in the back of my mind I'm still terrified that this [infection] could come back."

Hospital-acquired infections, like those that hit Dave Meyer, were long believed to be a cost of doing business. Hospital patients often have weakened immune systems, making them naturally more susceptible to bacterial infections. Experts say these infections can be reduced significantly or even eliminated, however, if hospitals have sound prevention measures in place.

During the past five years, most states have passed laws requiring hospitals to collect and report infection rates. A handful of states have zeroed in on a particularly dangerous "superbug"--Methicillin-resistant Staphylcoccus aureus, or MRSA--and mandated that hospitals carry out certain MRSA prevention measures. Some of these states require high-risk patients to be screened for MRSA bacteria upon admission.

The effect of these infections on human lives and bottom lines is staggering. Lawmakers hope their efforts will increase knowledge about hospital-acquired infections, jump-start hospitals' adoption of prevention practices, inform the public about infection rates and decrease costs.

Dr. William Jarvis, who was with the Centers for Disease Control for 23 years and is a leader in hospital-acquired infection control, sees hospital-acquired infections caused by MRSA as a huge problem.

"If you look at health care-associated infections that are caused by multi-drug resistant organisms, MRSA is No. 1," he says. "MRSA is the one health care-associated infection that is in...