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Studies have consistently demonstrated the patient safety and financial impacts of false positive blood cultures. Increased costs for pharmacy, laboratory, diagnostic imagining and other tests/treatments, coupled with extended inpatient length of stay drive undesirable patient outcomes and unnecessary, avoidable hospital expenses.
Quantifying direct and indirect financial impacts of false positives illustrates the opportunity that any improvement in false positive contamination rate will have on both patient care as well as financial performance of institutions that rely on blood cultures as a diagnostic tool.
Below you will find a brief abstract, as well as links to published studies that analyze the costs and impacts of false positive blood cultures:
STUDY TITLE
Innovation for Reducing Blood Culture Contamination: Initial Specimen Diversion Technique |
STUDY AUTHORS
Patton, R.G.; T. Schmitt |
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J. Clin. Microbiol. December 2010, p. 4501-4503, Vol. 48, No. 12
In this study, Patton evaluates the the impact and effectiveness of diverting the first of venipuncture blood from the culture specimen. Utilization of this technique results in significant reduction in false-positive contamination rates.
Click here to view abstract
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STUDY TITLE
Impact of blood cultures drawn by phlebotomy on contamination rates and health care costs in a hospital emergency department. |
STUDY AUTHORS
Gander, R. M., L. Byrd, M. DeCrescenzo, S. Hirany, M. Bowen, and J. Baughman |
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J. Clin. Microbiol. April 2009, p. 1021-1024, Vol. 47, No. 4
Gander et al evaluated contamination rates for phlebotomy as well as non-phelobotomy staff looking at incremental cost and extension of hospital stay attributable to false-positive cultures
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STUDY TITLE
"Contaminant blood cultures and resource utilization: the true consequences of false-positive results." |
STUDY AUTHORS
Bates, DW; Goldman L; Lee TII |
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JAMA, January 1991, pp. 365-369, Vol. 265 No. 3
In this study, Bates et al examine the impacts of false-positive blood cultures by analyzing the typical treatment response, associated costs, average increase in hospital stays, etc.
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STUDY TITLE
"Trends in Blood Culture Contamination: A College of American Pathologists Q-Tracks Study of 356 Institutions" |
STUDY AUTHORS
Bekeris et al |
Archives of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, October 2005,
pp. 1222–1225. Vol. 129, No. 10
Study analyzes the impact of dedicated laboratory phlebotomists vs. non-laboratory personnel collecting blood samples on contamination rates. The research also evaluates the financial impact of false-blood cultures by performing charge-to-cost and inflation adjustments to the analysis conducted by Bates et al in 1991.
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STUDY TITLE
"Updated Review of Blood Culture Contamination"
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STUDY AUTHORS
Hall, KH; Lyman, JA |
Clinical Microbiology Reviews, October 2006, pp. 788-802, Vol. 19, No. 4
Comprehensive review of blood culture contamination subject with one-hundred sixty-one (161) references. The review includes details of current known detection and prevention methods.
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STUDY TITLE
"A randomized trial of povidone-iodine compared with iodine tincture for venipuncture site disinfection: effects on rates of blood culture contamination."
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STUDY AUTHORS
Little, JR; Murray, PR; Traynor, PS; Spitznagel, E |
American Journal of Medicine, August 1999, pp. 119-125, Vol. 107, No. 2
This study includes a cost analysis showing 112 contaminated cultures with an increased cost of $5,629 ($4,100 in 1999 inflation adjusted to 2008) compared to control blood culture negative population.
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