Blood clots…deep vein thrombosis (dvt)…pulmonary embolism….whatever you call them…they are life-threatening…especially if you are in the hospital recovering from surgery. Clots kill some 200,000 hospital patients per year.
The hospitals which provide the best care are taking steps to reduce the risk of dying from blood clots. Steps which include:
1. Screening patients for potential risk factors such as obesity, smoking, and a family history of clotting problems.
2. Closely following guidelines for prevention of blood clots such as putting certain patients on blood-thinning medications, including anti-clotting drugs like heparin or warfarin.
3. Using special compression stockings for a patient’s legs, after surgery, which improve circulation.
Wonder what the following hospitals in western Virginia are doing to reduce the risk of blood clots?
Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital, Lewis-Gale Hospital, Memorial Hospital of Martinsville and Henry County, Danville Regional Medical Center, Stonewall Jackson Hospital, Carilion New River Valley Hospital, Montgomery Regional Hospital, Wellmont Bristol Regional Hospital, Carilion Giles Memorial Hospital, Alleghany Regional Hospital, Carilion Franklin Memorial Hospital, and Tazewell Community Hospital