Surgery Center Infections

A new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association finds that surgery centers have serious problems with infection control. The study was done in response to an outbreak in Nevada of hepatitis C where 63,000 surgery center patients had to be notified.

The new study found 67% of the centers studied had at least one lapse in infection control and 57% were cited for deficiencies. Some of the centers in the study hadn't been inspected 12 years.

There are more than 5,000 outpatient surgery centers in the U.S. today performing more than 6 million procedures annually.