Hospitals can make patients sick due to poor hygiene and sanitation. Around 100,000 people in the US die from infections contracted in hospitals each year, compared to less than 50,000 traffic deaths. Hospital floors, walls, doors, and medical equipment are often not properly cleaned. Food carts and trays can be contaminated. Doctors and nurses may neglect to clean equipment like stethoscopes between patients or wash hands before putting on gloves. Consumer groups advise patients to demand cleanliness and report unsanitary conditions, though some patients are reluctant to confront medical staff.

1. ENGLISH 4 LISTENING
HEALTH AND MEDICINE
HOSPITALS CAN MAKE YOU SICK
FROM : 365 ESL SHORT STORIES
1 About 100,000 people die each year in US hospitals from infections that they
2 get while they are in the hospital. Less than half that many die on US
3 highways. The hospital deaths are due to poor housekeeping and poor
4 hygiene. Floors, walls, and doors are not cleaned regularly or thoroughly.
5 Room dividers are almost never cleaned. The carts that carry food trays, and
6 the trays themselves, are usually contaminated from handling and coughing.
7 Cooks and other food handlers can easily infect the food by not washing
8 properly after using the bathroom.
9 Doctors and nurses are just as guilty as other staff. Doctors rarely clean their
10 stethoscopes after each patient. Nurses apply blood pressure cuffs to patient
11 after patient without cleaning the cuffs. Doctors often put on gloves without
12 washing their hands first. As a result, the germs on their hands are
13 transferred to the outside of the gloves.
14 Consumer groups warn patients that they must demand cleanliness. If they
15 see or suspect unsanitary conditions, they must tell someone immediately. It
16 could be a matter of life or death. But, as one patient said, "No way! You
17 don't tell your boss that he has bad breath, and you don't tell your doctor
18 that he needs to wash his hands."
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