One-third of hospitals rated by Consumer Reports got low scores on how well they prevent Clostridium difficile, according to an article on the KCENTV website.
Many are elite teaching hospitals, like those at Johns Hopkins University or Harvard Medical School, and the list includes the prestigious Cleveland Clinic.
"These infections are not mysterious," a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention official said. "They're caused by unwashed hands, rooms that are not cleaned thoroughly, overuse and misuse of antibiotics, a lack of careful hygiene in inserting catheters and other tubes, and slow detection of outbreaks.
"There are clear simple steps. The hard part is to do them each and every time."
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