We noted a statistically significant, modest improvement in compliance after introduction of an alcohol-based hand gel with multifaceted QI support. When appropriately implemented, alcohol-based HH may be effective in improving compliance.
ArstractObjectives:To investigate an outbreak ofPseudomonas aeruginosapneumonia and bloodstream infection among four neonates, determine risk factors for infection, and implement preventive strategies.Design:Retrospective case finding; prospective surveillance cultures of patients, personnel, and environmental sites; molecular typing by pulsed-field gel electrophoresis; and a matched case-control study.Patients and Setting:Neonates in the level-III neonatal intensive care unit of a tertiary-care pediatric institution.Interventions:Cohorting of patients with positive results forP. aeruginosa, work restrictions for staff with positive results, implementation of an alcohol-based hand product, review of infection control policies and procedures, and closure of the unit until completion of the investigation.Results:Seven (4%) of 190 environmental cultures and 5 (3%) of 178 cultures of individual healthcare workers' hands grewP. aeruginosa. All four outbreak isolates and one previous bloodstream isolate were genotypically identical, as were theP. aeruginosaisolates from the hands and external auditory canal of a healthcare worker with intermittent otitis externa. Four of 5 case-patients versus 5 of 15 matched control-patients had been cared for by this healthcare worker (P= .05). The healthcare worker was treated and no further cases occurred.Conclusions:These findings suggest that a healthcare worker with intermittent otitis externa may have caused this cluster of fatalP. aeruginosainfections, adding the external ear to the list of colonized body sites that may serve as a source of potentially pathogenic organisms.
We compared class I surgical-site infection (SSI) rates for new and experienced surgeons. Data showed that new surgeons in two surgical subspecialties associated with higher baseline SSI rates had rates higher than their experienced colleagues. They took longer in the operating room (OR), but did not operate on sicker patients. As the surgeons gained more experience (as measured by cumulative cases), their OR times and SSI rates decreased toward their colleagues'. New surgeons who perform infection-prone surgery may have higher SSI rates than more experienced colleagues until they gain experience. A new surgeon's SSI rate could be one factor considered in assessing competence.
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