Giving antibiotics to patients having surgery is an effective way to prevent infections after surgery.

It is equally important to stop preventive antibiotics as soon as it is safely possible to do so. Using antibiotics when they aren't needed is one factor that creates drug-resistant bacteria. When bacteria become resistant to the drugs available to treat the infections they cause, it can be very difficult to control infections.

The chart below compares the number of patients whose antibiotics were stopped within 24 hours of surgery at Cedars-Sinai to other hospitals nationally and in California.

A higher number is better than a lower number.

The chart above shows how Cedars-Sinai's performance on this measure compared with the top 10% of hospitals in the United States, the national average for hospitals, the top 10% of hospitals in California and the California average. These data reflect care given to patients at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center from April through June 2007. The national and California data reflect care given to patients from April 2006 through March 2007.