Lessons learned while implementing mandatory health care-associated infection reporting in New York State

Patient Safety and Legal Regulations: A Total-Scale Analysis of the Scientific Literature

OBJECTIVE

The aim of the study was to quantitatively analyze the scientific literature landscape covering legal regulations of patient safety.

METHODS

This retrospective bibliometric analysis queried Web of Science database to identify relevant publications. The identified scientific literature was quantitatively evaluated to reveal prevailing study themes, contributing journals, countries, institutions, and authors, as well as citation patterns.

RESULTS

The identified 1295 publications had a mean of 13.8 citations per publication and an h-index of 57. Approximately 78.8% of them were published since 2010, with the United States being the top contributor and having the greatest publication growth. A total of 79.2% (n = 1025) of the publications were original articles, and 12.5% (n = 162) were reviews. The top authors (by number of publications published on the topic) were based in the United States and Spain and formed 3 collaboration clusters. The top institutions by number of published articles were mainly based in the United States and United Kingdom, with Harvard University being on top. Internal medicine, surgery, and nursing were the most recurring clinical disciplines. Among 4 distinct approaches to improve patient safety, reforms of the liability system (n = 91) were most frequently covered, followed by new forms of regulation (n = 73), increasing transparency (n = 67), and financial incentives (n = 38).

CONCLUSIONS

Approximately 78.8% of the publications on patient safety and its legal implications were published since 2010, and the United States was the top contributor. Approximately 79.2% of the publications were original articles, whereas 12.5% were reviews. Healthcare sciences services was the most recurring journal category, with internal medicine, surgery, and nursing being the most recurring clinical disciplines. Key relevant laws around the globe were identified from the literature set, with some examples highlighted from the United States, Germany, Italy, France, Sweden, Poland, and Indonesia. Our findings highlight the evolving nature and the diversity of legislative regulations at international scale and underline the importance of healthcare workers to be aware of the development and latest advancement in this field and to understand that different requirements are established in different jurisdictions so as to safeguard the necessary standards of patient safety.

Perceived impact of state-mandated reporting on infection prevention and control departments

BACKGROUND

Currently, most US states have adopted legislation requiring hospitals to submit health care-associated infection (HAI) data. We evaluated the perceived impact of state HAI laws on infection prevention and control (IPC) departments.

METHODS

A web-based survey of a national sample of all non-veteran hospitals enrolled in the National Healthcare Safety Network was conducted in fall 2011. Variations in IPC department resources and characteristics in states with and without laws were compared by use of χ², Mann-Whitney (Wilcoxon), and Student t tests. Multinomial logistic regression was used to identify increases or decreases, versus no change, in perceived resources, time, influence, and visibility of the IPC department in states with and without HAI laws.

RESULTS

Overall, 1,036 IPC departments provided complete data (30% response rate); 755 (73%) were located in states with laws. Respondents in states with reporting laws were more likely to report less time for routine IPC activities (odds ratio, 1.61; 95% confidence interval, 1.12-2.31) and less visibility of the IPC department (odds ratio, 1.70; 95% confidence interval, 1.12-2.58) than respondents in states without laws, after controlling for geographic region, setting, and the presence of a hospital epidemiologist.

CONCLUSIONS

Respondents in states with laws reported negative effects on their IPC department, beyond what was required by federal mandates. Further research should examine resources necessary to comply with state HAI laws and evaluate unintended consequences of state HAI laws.