through a central line
Credit: Rhoda Baer
Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) are on the decline in the US, according to a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The data show that most types of HAIs have decreased in recent years, with a particularly large decrease in the rate of central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs).
The National and State Healthcare-associated Infection Progress Report is a snapshot of how each state and the country are doing in eliminating the infections that hospitals are required to report to the CDC.
The report summarizes data submitted to the CDC’s National Healthcare Safety Network, the nation’s HAI tracking system, which is used by more than 14,500 healthcare facilities across all 50 states, Washington, DC, and Puerto Rico.
“Hospitals have made real progress to reduce some types of healthcare-associated infections; it can be done,” said CDC Director Tom Frieden, MD.
“The key is for every hospital to have rigorous infection control programs to protect patients and healthcare workers, and for health care facilities and others to work together to reduce the many types of infections that haven’t decreased enough.”
On the national level, the report showed a 46% decrease in CLABSIs between 2008 and 2013. It also revealed a 19% decrease in surgical site infections related to the 10 procedures tracked in the report between 2008 and 2013.
There was an 8% decrease in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bloodstream infections between 2011 and 2013 and a 10% decrease in Clostridium difficile infections between 2011 and 2013.
However, there was a 6% increase in catheter-associated urinary tract infections since 2009.
Not all states reported or had enough data to calculate valid infection information on every infection in the report. But the CDC compared the number of infections reported to a national baseline.
And they found that 26 states performed better than the nation on at least 2 of the infection types. Sixteen states performed better than the nation on 3 or more infections, including 6 states performing better on 4 infections.
But 19 states performed worse than the nation on 2 infections, with 8 states performing worse on at least 3 infections.
The national baseline for HAIs will be reset at the end of 2015. Starting in 2016, HAI prevention progress from 2016 to 2020 will be measured in comparison to infection data from 2015.
