Last week, the CDC released the National and State Healthcare-associated Infection Data Report for 2015 National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) data. The National Healthcare Safety Network is the nation’s most widely used Healthcare Associated Infections (HAI) tracking system and is being used for care improvement by facilities, states, regions, quality groups, and national public health agencies including CDC. [...]
On March 3rd, the CDC released the National and State Healthcare Associated Infections (HAI) Progress Report for 2014 National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) data. This annual report provides an update on previous reports, detailing state and national progress towards reducing, and ultimately eliminating, HAIs. The infection types highlighted in the report include Central Line-Associated [...]
There’s a saying in the healthcare profession that “one good housekeeper can prevent more infections than a dozen doctors can cure.” Environmental cleaning is critical to prevent healthcare-associated infections. In healthcare settings, germs are present throughout the environment, many of which cause infections. Contaminated surfaces play a vital role in the transmission of dangerous [...]
Recent media has highlighted one of the most common antibiotic-resistant-bacteria, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). In the US, over 2 million people are infected with antibiotic-resistant bacteria and more than 23,000 people die due to these infections. Anyone can get MRSA and infections range from mild to very serious, even life-threatening. Most MRSA infections are skin [...]
This week is International Infection Prevention Week (IIPW), which started in 1986 under a proclamation from President Reagan. For the 4th year in a row, October 20-26, 2013 is Arizona Infection Prevention Week. Since it started, the week has been used to spread awareness about interventions that promote safe healthcare practices and prevention of healthcare-associated infections [...]
… that is the question- at least when it comes to whether to take standard measures to decolonize intensive care patients with antibiotic ointments in their nose to remove Staphylococcus bugs. Hospital associated infections are a critical public health and healthcare cost problem. While we’re losing ground in our fight against obesity- we’re making progress [...]
Today, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released information about an infection some folks were getting because of the ink used in their tattoos. It reminds me that there are some good practices that folks who want tattoos can ask their artist about - I wrote about it last year in Tattoo You? Regardless [...]
Awhile back, our epidemiology and licensing team of disease detectives including Jason Lempp, Cara Christ, Vinita Oberoi, Jessica Rigler, Ken Komatsu, Kathy McCanna, Connie Belden, Ken Komatsu, and Shoana Anderson learned of a severe case of a Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) through our 24-hour disease reporting system. Our team quickly contacted the county public health department which immediately began an [...]
New testing equipment at the state lab is going to help us with flu tracking this fall and dramatically speed up testing for Tuberculosis. The instrument called the Gene Xpert looks for DNA mutations – we can tell if a TB case is resistant to certain antibiotics. For instance, on specific mutation is a marker for rifampin [...]
Each year in the US there are 1.7 million health care associated infections that cause approximately 99,000 deaths in US hospitals. There are lots of germs that can cause health care associated infections, but 16% are in the really bad category because they’re resistant to antibiotics. These multidrug-resistant organisms pose huge problems once they get [...]
