What You Need To Know About MRSA

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a bacteria that causes infections in different parts of the body. MRSA is sometimes called the "superbug" because it is resistant to several types of antibiotics that are commonly used to treat Staphylococcus aureus.

Most often, MRSA causes mild infections on the skin, causing pimples or boils. But it can also cause more serious skin infections or infect surgical wounds, the bloodstream, the lungs, or the urinary tract. Though most MRSA infections aren't serious, some can be life-threatening.

MRSA is spread by contact, such as by touching another person who has it on their skin, or by touching objects that have the bacteria on them.

People who are more susceptible to MRSA include those with weakened immune systems and those who are confined to hospitals, nursing homes, or other health care systems.

Hand hygiene is key to prevention.  Florida Hospital Waterman monitors hand hygiene compliance throughout our facility, practices standard precautions for all patients, and routinely reviews for notification of any expanded precautions necessary to ensure safe care and reduce the risk of transmission of communicable diseases.

Click here for more detailed information about MRSA.

Quality Measures

Part of our continuing efforts at improving quality is participation in a national initiative for public reporting of quality measures promoted by organizations including the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of HealthCare Organizations (Joint Commission).

Quality Measures, also called Core Measures, refer to specific sets of guidelines in the treatment of four of the most common and costly conditions: Acute Myocardial Infarction (Heart Attack), Heart Failure, Pneumonia and Surgical Infection.  These quality measures are important because research has shown that following these guidelines leads to significantly better outcomes.

Quality measures indicate how well a hospital is doing in following specific guidelines as a percentage of applicable cases and provides a comparison to the national average. It is important to remember that interpreting these results may be difficult since there are times when it may be best for a patient that a guideline is not specifically followed.  

Click here to access to the
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services "Hospital Compare" tool to view Florida Hospital Waterman’s quality measures.

Click here to access the Agency for Health Care Administration (AHCA) consumer website with charge and performance measures
for hospitals.