The Denver District Court has granted preliminary approval to a $6.5 million settlement resolving allegations that a hospital failed to adequately sterilize surgical instruments.
Instrument Sterilization Class Action Settles for $6.5M
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Secondary#centurahealthporteradventisthospital#portercare
The class action was brought against PorterCare Adventist Health System doing business as Centura Health-Porter Adventist Hospital, Centura Health Corporation, and Porter Adventist Hospital (collectively the “hospital”).
According to the plaintiffs for the class action settlement, former patients alleged that the hospital “failed to adequately sterilize surgical instruments, failed to inform the public and medical professionals of this sterilization problem, and unjustly profited from the surgeries it provided during this period of time.”
The settlement affects patients who had orthopedic or spinal surgery at Porter Adventist Hospital in Denver, Colorado, between July 21, 2016, and April 5, 2018. Patients who received surgical treatment during that time received a letter informing them of a potential increased risk of infection.
If they subsequently underwent blood testing for bloodborne pathogens after learning about the sterilization issue and had negative results, they may be eligible to be part of the class action. Testing included tests for hepatitis B, hepatitis C, and HIV. Patients who experienced a physical injury including surgical site infection are not included in the class.
According to the settlement agreement, the hospital will pay $6.5 million to settle the class action for 3,000 class members. The funds will be distributed equally, on a pro-rata basis, to each class member. Each class member will receive an estimated $1,250.
The hospital denies all allegations of wrongdoing. The final approval hearing for the settlement is currently scheduled for September 2023.
Porter Adventist Hospital, according to its website, is a full-service, acute-care referral center. It specializes in the following: joint replacement, spine surgery, organ transplant, behavioral health, cancer care, and innovative cardiac treatments. It lists joint replacement as one of its distinctive services.
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This is a fascinating development. In my practice we've seen similar outcomes with the revised protocol. The key differentiator seems to be patient selection criteria. Has anyone else noticed the correlation with BMI thresholds?
Great point. I'd push back slightly on the conclusion, the sample size in the cited study is too small to draw population-level inferences. That said, the directional signal is compelling and worth a larger RCT.
We implemented a similar approach last year. Early results are promising but we're still gathering 12-month follow-up data. Happy to share our protocol if anyone is interested.
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