To describe antimicrobial resistance patterns for healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) reported to the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) during 2009-2010.

Central line-associated bloodstream infections, catheter-associated urinary tract infections, ventilator-associated pneumonia, and surgical site infections were included. Pooled mean proportions of isolates interpreted as resistant (or, in some cases, nonsusceptible) to selected antimicrobial agents were calculated by type of HAI and compared to historical data.

Overall, 2,039 hospitals reported 1 or more HAIs; 1,749 (86%) were general acute care hospitals, and 1,143 (56%) had fewer than 200 beds. There were 69,475 HAIs and 81,139 pathogens reported. Eight pathogen groups accounted for about 80% of reported pathogens: Staphylococcus aureus (16%), Enterococcus spp. (14%), Escherichia coli (12%), coagulase-negative staphylococci (11%), Candida spp. (9%), Klebsiella pneumoniae (and Klebsiella oxytoca; 8%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (8%), and Enterobacter spp. (5%). The percentage of resistance was similar to that reported in the previous 2-year period, with a slight decrease in the percentage of S. aureus resistant to oxacillins (MRSA). Nearly 20% of pathogens reported from all HAIs were the following multidrug-resistant phenotypes: MRSA (8.5%); vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (3%); extended-spectrum cephalosporin-resistant K. pneumoniae and K. oxytoca (2%), E. coli (2%), and Enterobacter spp. (2%); and carbapenem-resistant P. aeruginosa (2%), K. pneumoniae/oxytoca (<1%), E, coli (<1%), and Enterobacter spp. (<1%). Among facilities reporting HAIs with 1 of the above gram-negative bacteria, 20%-40% reported at least 1 with the resistant phenotype.

While the proportion of resistant isolates did not substantially change from that in the previous 2 years, multidrug-resistant gram-negative phenotypes were reported from a moderate proportion of facilities.

To assess challenges to implementation of a new National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) surveillance definition, mucosal barrier injury laboratory-confirmed bloodstream infection (MBI-LCBI).

Multicenter field test.

Selected locations of acute care hospitals participating in NHSN central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) surveillance.

Hospital staff augmented their CLABSI surveillance for 2 months to incorporate MBI-LCBI: a primary bloodstream infection due to a selected group of organisms in patients with either neutropenia or an allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant with gastrointestinal graft-versus-host disease or diarrhea. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) staff reviewed submitted data to verify whether CLABSIs met MBI-LCBI criteria and summarized the descriptive epidemiology of cases reported.

Eight cancer, 2 pediatric, and 28 general acute care hospitals including 193 inpatient units (49% oncology/bone marrow transplant [BMT], 21% adult ward, 20% adult critical care, 6% pediatric, 4% step-down) conducted field testing. Among 906 positive blood cultures reviewed, 282 CLABSIs were identified. Of the 103 CLABSIs that also met MBI-LCBI criteria, 100 (97%) were reported from oncology/BMT locations. Agreement between hospital staff and CDC classification of reported CLABSIs as meeting the MBI-LCBI definition was high (90%; k= 0.82). Most MBI-LCBIs (91%) occurred in patients meeting neutropenia criteria. Some hospitals indicated that their laboratories' methods of reporting cell counts prevented application of neutropenia criteria; revised neutropenia criteria were created using data from field testing.

Hospital staff applied the MBI-LCBI definition accurately. Field testing informed modifications for the January 2013 implementation of MBI-LCBI in the NHSN.

To evaluate the impact of an institutional hand hygiene accountability program on healthcare personnel hand hygiene adherence.

Time-series design with correlation analysis.

Tertiary care academic medical center, including outpatient clinics and procedural areas.

Medical center healthcare personnel.

A comprehensive hand hygiene initiative was implemented in 2 major phases starting in July 2009. Key facets of the initiative included extensive project planning, leadership buy-in and goal setting, financial incentives linked to performance, and use of a system-wide shared accountability model. Adherence was measured by designated hand hygiene observers. Adherence rates were compared between baseline and implementation phases, and monthly hand hygiene adherence rates were correlated with monthly rates of device-associated infection.

A total of 109,988 observations were completed during the study period, with a sustained increase in hand hygiene adherence throughout each implementation phase (P<.0001) as well as from one phase to the next (P < .0001), such that adherence greater than 85% has been achieved since January 2011. Medical center departments were able to reclaim some rebate dollars allocated through a self-insurance trust, but during the study period, departments did not achieve full reimbursement. Hand hygiene adherence rates were inversely correlated with device-associated standardized infection ratios (R2 = 0.70).

Implementation of this multifaceted, observational hand hygiene program was associated with sustained improvement in hand hygiene adherence. The principles of this program could be applied to other medical centers pursuing improved hand hygiene adherence among healthcare personnel.

Recent studies have demonstrated that central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs) are preventable through implementation of evidence-based prevention practices. Hospitals have reported CLABSI data to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) since the 1970s, providing an opportunity to characterize the national impact of CLABSIs over time. Our objective was to describe changes in the annual number of CLABSIs in critical care patients in the United States.

Monte Carlo simulation.

US acute care hospitals.

Nonneonatal critical care patients.

We obtained administrative data on patient-days for nearly all US hospitals and applied CLABSI rates from the National Nosocomial Infections Surveillance and the National Healthcare Safety Network systems to estimate the annual number of CLABSIs in critical care patients nationally during the period 1990–2010 and the number of CLABSIs prevented since 1990.

We estimated that there were between 462,000 and 636,000 CLABSIs in nonneonatal critical care patients in the United States during 1990–2010. CLABSI rate reductions led to between 104,000 and 198,000 fewer CLABSIs than would have occurred if rates had remained unchanged since 1990. There were 15,000 hospital-onset CLABSIs in nonneonatal critical care patients in 2010; 70% occurred in medium and large teaching hospitals.

Substantial progress has been made in reducing the occurrence of CLABSIs in US critical care patients over the past 2 decades. The concentration of critical care CLABSIs in medium and large teaching hospitals suggests that a targeted approach may be warranted to continue achieving reductions in critical care CLABSIs nationally.

To evaluate the reliability and validity of a standardized measure of healthcare personnel (HCP) influenza vaccination.

Acute care hospitals, long-term care facilities, ambulatory surgery centers, physician practices, and dialysis centers from 3 US jurisdictions.

Staff from 96 healthcare facilities randomly sampled from 234 facilities that completed pilot testing to assess the feasibility of the measure.

Reliability was assessed by comparing agreement between facility staff and project staff on the classification of HCP numerator (vaccinated at facility, vaccinated elsewhere, contraindicated, declined) and denominator (employees, credentialed nonemployees, other nonemployees) categories. To assess validity, facility staff completed a series of case studies to evaluate how closely classification of HCP groups aligned with the measure's specifications. In a modified Delphi process, experts rated face validity of the proposed measure elements on a Likert-type scale.

Percent agreement was high for HCP vaccinated at the facility (99%) and elsewhere (95%) and was lower for HCP who declined vaccination (64%) or were medically contraindicated (64%). While agreement was high (more than 90%) for all denominator categories, many facilities' staff excluded nonemployees for whom numerator and denominator status was difficult to determine. Validity was lowest for credentialed and other nonemployees.

The standardized measure of HCP influenza vaccination yields reproducible results for employees vaccinated at the facility and elsewhere. Adhering to true medical contraindications and tracking decimations should improve reliability. Difficulties in establishing denominators and determining vaccination status for credentialed and other nonemployees challenged the measure's validity and prompted revision to include a more limited group of nonemployees.

To describe the epidemiology of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) in community hospitals.

Prospective study in 31 community hospitals from 2007 to 2011.

VAP surveillance was performed by infection preventionists using the National Healthcare Safety Network protocol. VAP incidence was reported as number of events per 1,000 ventilator-days. We categorized hospitals into small (<30,000 patient-days/year), medium (30,000–60,000 patient-days/year), and large (>60,000 patient-days/year) groups and compared VAP incidence by hospital size.

The median VAP incidence was 1.4 (interquartile range, 0.4–2.4), and ventilator utilization ratio (VUR) was 0.33 (0.25–0.47). VAP incidence was higher in small hospitals (2.1) than medium (0.85) or large (0.69) hospitals (P = .03) despite a lower VUR in small hospitals (0.29 vs 0.31 vs 0.44, respectively; P = .01). The median age of 247 VAP cases was 64 (53-73); 136 (55.1%) were female; 142 (57.5%) were Caucasian; 170 (68.8%) were admitted from home. The length of stay and duration of ventilation were 26 (14–42) and 12 (4–21) days, respectively. The pre- and postinfection hospital stays were 8 (3–13) days and 14 (8–30) days, respectively. Data on outcomes were available in 214 cases (86.6%), and 75 (35.0%) cases died during hospitalization. The top 3 pathogens were methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA; n = 70, 27.9%), Pseudomonas species (n = 40, 16.3%), and Klebsiella species (n = 34, 13.3%).

VAP incidence was inversely associated with size of hospital. VAP in community hospitals was frequently caused by MRSA. Importantly, predictors of VAP incidence in tertiary care hospitals such as VUR may not be predictive in community hospitals with few ventilated patients.

To determine the fraction of unnecessary antimicrobial use among patients with current and/or recent Clostridium difficile infection (CDI).

Retrospective review from January 2004 through December 2006.

Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Medical Center (MVAMC).

Patients with new-onset CDI diagnosed at the MVAMC without another CDI diagnosis in the prior 30 days.

Pharmacy and medical records were reviewed to identify incident CDI cases, non-CDI antimicrobial use during and up to 30 days after completion of CDI treatment, and patient characteristics. Two infectious disease physicians independently assessed non-CDI antimicrobial use, which was classified as unnecessary if not fully indicated. Factors associated with only unnecessary use were identified through univariable and multivariable analysis.

Of 246 patients with new-onset CDI, 141 (57%) received non-CDI antimicrobials during and/or after their CDI treatment, totaling 2,147 antimicrobial days and 445 antimicrobial courses. The two reviewers agreed regarding the necessity of antimicrobials in more than 99% of antimicrobial courses (85% initially, 14% after discussion). Seventy-seven percent of patients received at least 1 unnecessary antimicrobial dose, 26% of patients received only unnecessary antimicrobials, and 45% of total non-CDI antimicrobial days included unnecessary antimicrobials. The leading indications for unnecessary antimicrobial use were putative urinary tract infection and pneumonia. Drug classes frequently used unnecessarily were fluoroquinolones and β-lactams.

Twenty-six percent of patients with recent CDI received only unnecessary (and therefore potentially avoidable) antimicrobials. Heightened awareness and caution are needed when antimicrobial therapy is contemplated for patients with recent CDI.

In 2009, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommended “My Five Moments for Hand Hygiene” (5MHH) to optimize hand hygiene (HH). Uptake of these recommendations by healthcare workers (HCWs) remains uncertain.

We prospectively observed HCW compliance to 5MHH. After observations, eligible HCWs who consented to interviews completed surveys on factors associated with HH compliance based on constructs from the transtheoretical model of behavioral change (TTM) and the theory of planned behavior (TPB). Survey results were compared with observed HCW behaviors.

There were 968 observations among 123 HCWs, of whom 110 (89.4%) were female and 63 (51.3%) were nurses. The mean HH compliance for all 5MHH was 23.2% (95% confidence interval [CI], 18.1%-28.3%) by direct observation versus 82.4% (95% CI, 79.9%-84.9%) by self report. The HCW 5MHH compliance was associated with critical care unit encounters (P < .05), medicine unit encounters (P = 0.08, P <.001), immunocompromised patient encounters (P <. 05), and HCW prioritized patient advocacy (P <.001). Self-reported TTM stages of action or maintenance (P = .08) and the total TPB behavior score correlated with observed 5MHH (r = 0.21, P = .02) and with self-reported 5MHH compliance (r = 0.53, P < .001).

Observed HCW compliance to 5MHH was associated with the type of hospital unit, type of provider-patient encounter, and theory-based behavioral measures of 5MHH commitment.

Antimicrobial susceptibility patterns across US pediatric healthcare institutions are unknown. A national pooled pediatric antibiogram (1) identifies nationwide trends in antimicrobial resistance, (2) allows across-hospital benchmarking, and (3) provides guidance for empirical antimicrobial regimens for institutions unable to generate pediatric antibiograms.

In January 2012, a request for submission of pediatric antibiograms between 2005 and 2011 was sent to 233 US hospitals. A summary antibiogram was compiled from participating institutions to generate proportions of antimicrobial susceptibility. Temporal and regional comparisons were evaluated using χ² tests and logistic regression, respectively.

Of 200 institutions (85%) responding to our survey, 78 (39%) reported generating pediatric antibiograms, and 55 (71%) submitted antibiograms. Carbapenems had the highest activity against the majority of gram-negative organisms tested, but no antibiotic had more than 90% activity against Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Approximately 50% of all Staphylococcus aureus isolates were methicillin resistant. Western hospitals had significantly lower proportions of S. aureus that were methicillin resistant compared with all other regions tested. Overall, 21% of S. aureus isolates had resistance to clindamycin. Among Enterococcus faecium isolates, the prevalence of susceptibility to ampicillin (25%) and vancomycin (45%) was low but improved over time (P < .01), and 8% of E. faecium isolates were resistant to linezolid. Southern hospitals reported significantly higher prevalence of E. faecium with susceptibilities to ampicillin, vancomycin, and linezolid compared with the other 3 regions (P < .01).

A pooled, pediatric antibiogram can identify nationwide antimicrobial resistance patterns for common pathogens and might serve as a useful tool for benchmarking resistance and informing national prescribing guidelines for children.

To determine relative rates of blood culture contamination for 3 skin antisepsis interventions—10% povidone iodine aqueous solution (PI), 2% iodine tincture (IT), and 2% chlorhexidine gluconate in 70% isopropyl alcohol (CHG)—when used by dedicated phlebotomy teams to obtain peripheral blood cultures.

Randomized crossover trial with hospital floor as the unit of randomization.

Teaching hospital with 885 beds.

All adult patients undergoing peripheral blood culture collection on 3 medical-surgical floors from May 2009 through September 2009.

Each antisepsis intervention was used for 5 months on each study floor, with random crossover after a 1-month washout period. Phlebotomy teams collected all peripheral blood cultures. Each positive blood culture was adjudicated by physicians blinded to the intervention and scored as a true positive or contaminated blood culture. The primary outcome was the rate of blood culture contamination for each antisepsis agent.

In total, 12,904 peripheral blood culture sets were evaluated, of which 735 (5.7%) were positive. There were 98 contaminated cultures, representing 13.3% of all positive cultures. The overall blood culture contamination rate for the study population was 0.76%. Intent-to-treat rates of contaminated blood cultures were not significantly different among the 3 antiseptics (P = .18), yielding 0.58% with PI (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.38%-0.86%), 0.76% with IT (95% CI, 0.52%-1.07%), and 0.93% with CHG (95% CI, 0.67%-1.27%).

Choice of antiseptic agent does not impact contamination rates when blood cultures are obtained by a phlebotomy team and should, therefore, be based on costs or preference.

ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT01216761.

Reduce the frequency of contaminated blood cultures that meet National Healthcare Safety Network definitions for a central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI).

An observational study.

A 500-bed university-affiliated hospital.

A new blood culture policy discouraged drawing blood samples from central lines. Phlebotomists were reeducated regarding aseptic technique when obtaining blood samples by venipuncture. The intravenous therapy team was taught how to draw blood samples by venipuncture and served as a backup when phlebotomists were unable to obtain blood samples. A 2-nurse protocol and a special supply kit for obtaining blood samples from catheters were developed. Rates of blood culture contamination were monitored by the microbiology laboratory.

The proportion of blood samples obtained for culture from central lines decreased from 10.9% during January–June 2010 to 0.4% during July–December 2012 (P< .001). The proportion of blood cultures that were contaminated decreased from 84 (1.6%) of 5,274 during January–June 2010 to 21 (0.5%) of 4,245 during January–June 2012 (P< .001). Based on estimated excess hospital costs of $3,000 per contaminated blood culture, the reduction in blood culture contaminants yielded an estimated annualized savings of $378,000 in 2012 when compared to 2010. In mid-2010, 3 (30%) of 10 reported CLABSIs were suspected to represent blood culture contamination compared with none of 6 CLABSIs reported from mid-November 2010 through June 2012 (P = 0.25).

Multiple interventions resulted in a reduction in blood culture contamination rates and substantial cost savings to the hospital, and they may have reduced the number of reportable CLABSIs.

To quantify the association between admission to an intensive care unit (ICU) room most recently occupied by a patient positive for extended-spectrum β-lactamase (EBSL)-producing gram-negative bacteria and acquisition of infection or colonization with that pathogen.

Retrospective cohort study.

The study included patients admitted to medical and surgical ICUs of an academic medical center between September 1, 2001, and June 30, 2009.

Perianal surveillance cultures were obtained at admission to the ICU, weekly, and at discharge from the ICU. Patients were included if they had culture results that were negative for ESBL-producing gram-negative bacteria at ICU admission and had an ICU length of stay longer than 48 hours. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) was performed on ESBL-positive isolates from patients who acquired the same bacterial species (eg, Klebsiella species or Escherichia coli) as the previous room occupant.

Among 9, 371 eligible admissions (7, 651 unique patients), 267 (3%) involved patients who acquired an ESBL-producing pathogen in the ICU; of these patients, 32 (12%) were hospitalized in a room in which the prior occupant had been positive for ESBL. Logistic regression results suggested that the prior occupant's ESBL status was not significantly associated with acquisition of an ESBL-producing pathogen (adjusted odds ratio, 1.39 [95% confidence interval, 0.94-2.08]) after adjusting for colonization pressure and antibiotic exposure in the ICU. PFGE results suggested that 6 (18%) of 32 patients acquired a bacterial strain that was the same as or closely related to the strain obtained from the prior occupant.

These data suggest that environmental contamination may not play a substantial role in the transmission of ESBL-producing pathogens among ICU patients. Intensifying environmental decontamination may be less effective than other interventions in preventing transmission of ESBL-producing pathogens.