Sklar Research, Reports & Articles

Microbes have been known to exist in the environment since the beginning of time. Some microbes are as old as Earth itself. They are an inherent element of life. Microbes are found everywhere, deep inside the Earth’s crust, in the polar caps and in all bodies of water. They are also found in plants, animals, humans, and they reside in your clothes and hair. Microbes have played a part in shaping the different habitats across the globe, and have even helped mold the evolution of many life forms.

Patients should be aware of a medical practice that has become dangerously common during the last few years. Disposable medical instruments are being reused by hospitals even though manufacturers insist that these devices should be used once and then thrown away. So, why do some hospitals reprocess single-use instruments? Their answer is simple. They claim it saves them money. Why use a disposable pair of scissors to cut the umbilical cord on only one newborn child, when it’s better to reprocess them and use them on two newborns? The full price they paid for a single pair of scissors gets cut by 50% when utilizing this practice.

Surgical site infections (SSIs) have become a common type of undesired adverse effect for hospitalized patients. “It is estimated that 1 in 24 patients who undergo inpatient surgery in the US had a postoperative SSIs”.¹ SSIs comprise more than one-third of all hospital-acquired infections. These infections cause longer hospitalizations for patients, resulting in longer recovery time. Some patients may have to stay in the hospital for up to 10 days after surgery, depending on the severity of the infection. The increase in length of hospital stay or rate of re-hospitalization impacts total costs dramatically. Additionally, the risk of postoperative death is, by majority, directly related to surgical site infections.  “The estimated cost of SSI’s to hospitals is $7.4 billion, with 13,088 deaths per year”.²