Published: October 10, 2008

RID's Betsy McCaughey Teaches Students at High School How to Prevent Deadly Infections

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Lesson One: How to 'Do No Harm'

NEW YORK, Oct. 10 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Dr. Betsy McCaughey takes her crusade to reduce infection deaths to the High School of Health Professions and Human Services inNew York City as Principal for the Day on Thursday, October 16, 2008.

DATE: Thursday, October 16, 2008

TIME: 8am-1pm

PLACE: High School of Health Professions & Human Services

345 East 15th Street, between 1st and 2nd Avenues

New York, NY 10003

Dr. McCaughey, who is Chairman/Founder of the Committee to Reduce Infection Deaths (RID), will teach classes, hold a general assembly and lunch with students in an effort to make hygiene a central part of medicine.

Students from the High School of Health Professions and Human Services begin doing internships in hospitals and clinics by sophomore year. They are trained to go on to become doctors, physician assistants, nurses and medical technicians. "As Principal for the Day, I have a chance to teach students how to 'do no harm.' It should be students' first lesson before they interact with patients," says Dr. McCaughey.

RID, a non-profit organization, works with medical and nursing schools to deliver accurate research on infection prevention, and it holds forums at major medical conferences to educate thousands of caregivers on use of the latest infection-prevention technologies. Dr. McCaughey emphasizes that "one of RID's lasting legacies will be in our schools, where we help to educate the next generation of caregivers on how to provide clean care."

Hospital infections kill over 100,000 Americans each year -- more than AIDS, breast cancer and auto accidents combined. These infections add an estimated $30.5 billion to the nation's hospital costs each year.

Betsy McCaughey, Ph.D., is a former Lieutenant Governor ofNew York State and the Founder and Chairman of the Committee to Reduce Infection Deaths.

http://www.hospitalinfection.org/

CONTACT: Louisa Visconti of Committee to Reduce Infection Deaths,

+1-212-369-3329

SOURCE Committee to Reduce Infection Deaths