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Help Stop Dangerous "Super Bug" in Local Hospitals!

Target: Your State Governor
Sponsored by: Consumers Union
Over two million Americans develop hospital infections every year, and 90,000 patients die each year from these hospital infections. That's more people dying from hospital acquired infections than from homicides and auto accidents combined!

And now, a virulent "super bug" spreading in our hospitals poses a deadly risk to patients and is driving up the cost of hospital care. Most common antibiotics can't cure methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections. People who develop them while in the hospital often suffer for years with additional hospitalizations and surgeries.

Most U.S. hospitals have not yet implemented effective strategies to curb MRSA infections -- but they will if the public demands action.

Directed by your Governor, your state health department can assess each hospital's prevention program and then let the public know which hospitals are taking this deadly epidemic seriously. Sign our petition to tell your Governor to make stopping deadly hospital infections a priority!

deadline: 4-30-2008
goal: 60,000
 
50,566
signatures!

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Dear Governor,

A recent study found that hospital patients with increasingly common MRSA infections are
  • four times as likely to die,
  • charged three times as much, and
  • will stay in the hospital two and a half times as long.

    Hospitals in our state can do far more to curb the spread of dangerous methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections, and you can make it happen. We want to know which hospitals are using "active surveillance," a proven method to control the spread of MRSA.

    MRSA is associated with serious surgical infections, bloodstream infections and pneumonia. Many people with MRSA live with it for years, have multiple surgeries and are permanently disabled. MRSA accounts for 60 to 65 percent of hospital-acquired staph infections. It is spreading so quickly inside our medical facilities, we don't have any time to waste.
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    • We signed the “Help Stop Dangerous "Super Bug" in Local Hospitals!” petition!
    # 50,583:
    3:58 pm PDT, Sep 14, Joan Mclaughlin, Pennsylvania
    # 50,582:
    10:07 am PDT, Sep 11, Name not displayed, Georgia
    # 50,581:
    5:35 am PDT, Sep 4, Lorraine Petro, Connecticut
    # 50,580:
    10:34 pm PDT, Sep 3, Emily Barre, Arkansas
    # 50,579:
    3:06 pm PDT, Aug 29, Jen Grahm, California
    # 50,578:
    1:09 pm PDT, Aug 28, Cher Nelson, Minnesota
    Dear Governor, A recent study found that hospital patients with increasingly common MRSA infections are four times as likely to die, charged three times as much, and will stay in the hospital two and a half times as long. Hospitals in our state can do far more to curb the spread of dangerous methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections, and you can make it happen. We want to know which hospitals are using "active surveillance," a proven method to control the spread of MRSA. MRSA is associated with serious surgical infections, bloodstream infections and pneumonia. Many people with MRSA live with it for years, have multiple surgeries and are permanently disabled. MRSA accounts for 60 to 65 percent of hospital-acquired staph infections. It is spreading so quickly inside our medical facilities, we don't have any time to waste. But it can be stopped. Hospitals have significantly reduced MRSA by using "active surveillance," in which patients are screened for MRSA so the bacteria can be eliminated and so hospital staff can use appropriate precautions to prevent the MRSA from spreading to other patients. If we don't check to see if a patient is colonized, we can't treat it and we can't prevent its spread. Based on success in decreasing MRSA in Pennsylvania VA hospitals, in January, the VA directed all Veterans Hospitals in the US to screen ICU and other at-risk patients for MRSA by using nasal swabs to test patients for the bacteria and isolating those carrying it. The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center reduced MRSA infections by 80 percent by using active surveillance in selected intensive care units. All hospitals should be using "active surveillance," which has been validated by more than 100 studies around the world as an effective prevention technique. The CDC and the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology in America have issued guidelines that describe the procedures for "active surveillance." Most hospitals are familiar with these yet few choose to use them. We are asking you to direct our state health agency to survey all hospitals to find out which ones are using active surveillance to prevent MRSA. We are asking for that information to be provided to the state legislature in a public report. We have a right to know which hospitals are using these successful evidence-based techniques. Sincerely, Cher B. Nelso 19180 University Ave NW Oak Grove MN 55011
    # 50,577:
    5:33 am PDT, Aug 26, Kelly Kemp, California
    # 50,576:
    6:44 pm PDT, Aug 25, Shawnamarie Murray MD, New Hampshire
    stop abusive doctors...
    # 50,575:
    4:13 pm PDT, Aug 25, Rick Blair, California
    # 50,574:
    4:04 pm PDT, Aug 23, Raw Rii, Arizona
    # 50,573:
    8:41 am PDT, Aug 20, Lillie Van Scoy, Virginia
    # 50,572:
    8:39 am PDT, Aug 18, Norman Hood, Texas
    # 50,571:
    3:55 pm PDT, Aug 11, Name not displayed, Montana
    # 50,570:
    4:00 pm PDT, Aug 8, Greta Malkotzoglou, Greece
    # 50,569:
    11:37 pm PDT, Aug 7, Donna Grover, New Jersey
    My Mom has been in and out of the hospital because of this superbug, and it has been a struggle for all her loved ones. Please don't let people be afraid to go to the hospital to get treatment. Thank you
    # 50,568:
    8:54 am PDT, Aug 7, Colleen Haas, Illinois
    # 50,567:
    4:07 pm PDT, Aug 6, Carol Collin, Virginia
    # 50,566:
    12:43 pm PDT, Aug 6, Bridget Hopper, Kentucky
    # 50,565:
    9:48 pm PDT, Aug 4, Zobeda Fernandez-cook, Florida
    # 50,564:
    8:28 pm PDT, Aug 2, Name not displayed, Maryland
    # 50,563:
    10:28 am PDT, Jul 26, Andrea Alnwick, New York
    # 50,562:
    4:26 pm PDT, Jul 25, Name not displayed, New York
    # 50,561:
    7:24 am PDT, Jul 22, Kathy Davis, Florida
    # 50,560:
    12:48 pm PDT, Jul 20, Kerri Cawthon, Oregon
    # 50,559:
    1:57 pm PDT, Jul 16, Barbara Labrecque, New York
    # 50,558:
    5:39 pm PDT, Jul 14, Christofer Nicodemus, California
    # 50,557:
    7:39 am PDT, Jul 14, Geoffrey Yost, Indiana
    # 50,556:
    10:47 am PDT, Jul 3, David Pryor, Texas
    # 50,555:
    10:59 am PDT, Jul 2, Sarah Davis, California
    My ex-boyfriend's grampa got MRSA while in a hospital in San Jose, which luckily they were able to cure as his health is unstable.
    # 50,554:
    9:34 pm PDT, Jun 23, Josephine Cicchini, New York
    Please sign our "Improvement in Quality of Patient Care Petition" http://www.petitiononline.com/patients/petition.html Physician Whistleblowers have little, if any, protection when they consider complaining about poor patient care delivered in a hospital. Because of this lack of protection, Physicians do not complain about poor patient care. This fear of retaliation for complaining leads to increased patient injury and increased patient deaths. There are approximately 500,000 avoidable patient deaths annually throughout the United States (1500 per day) and this number would be greatly reduced if physicians were not afraid to complain about poor patient care delivered inside a hospital. The Health Care Quality Improvement Act is abused by hospitals and permits hospitals to discipline and terminate physicians who complain about poor quality of care. The Health Care Quality Improvement Act removes Physician Due Process Rights. Physicians are unable to successfully contest a retaliatory hospital disciplinary process or termination. State and Federal Judges must interpret The Health Care Quality Improvement Act to afford Physicians their Due Process Rights so they will not be afraid to advocate for patients. The Health Care Quality Improvement Act must be interpreted and modified to stop hospital abuse and to better protect Physicians who wish to advocate for patients, thereby improving the quality of patient care. Josephine Cicchini jccicchi@yahoo.com
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