ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) - A federal health agency has found the University of New Mexico Hospital to be one of the worst in the country for sepsis after several patients developed the blood infection condition following surgical procedures.
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services released a report that showed the hospital had the tenth worst rate in contracting the condition in the country, the Albuquerque Journal reported.
The report also showed the facility was ranked the worst in the state for post-surgery blood infections.
“It’s been on our radar that we needed to improve,” said Richard Crowell, chief quality officer for the University of New Mexico Health System. “It’s certainly something that we’ve known.”
The University of New Mexico Hospital in Albuquerque had a score of 9.21 out of 10 for bloodstream infections after surgery, but scored in line with national averages for more than 100 other recorded measures, according to the report, which compiled data from 2016 to 2018.
Results from the report do not speak to the quality of care provided at the medical facility, hospital officials said, adding that they have been working for five years to reduce the rate of infections.
The hospital, which is the only Level 1 Trauma Center in the state, has a poor rating partially because the facility houses patients with some of the most severe illnesses, making them more vulnerable to infection, Crowell said.
“People that have a lot of complicated illnesses can have a reaction that a person with fewer risk factors … might not have,” he said.
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