Becker's Clinical Quality & Infection Control

6 INFECTION CONTROL Multidrug-resistant infections cost hospitals $2.4B annually By Mackenzie Bean H ospitals spend more than $2 billion annually to treat patients with multi- drug-resistant infections, according to a study published in Health Services Research. For the study, researchers used multivariable regression models to assess hospitalization costs and length of stay for 6.4 million inpatient stays involving bacterial infections in 2014. ree study findings: 1. At least 10.8 percent of inpatient stays involving a bacterial infection showed evidence of one or more multidrug-resistant organisms. 2. Researchers estimated the cost of treating multidrug-resistant infections in the inpa- tient setting is at least $2.39 billion annually. When accounting for undercoded infections, this estimate jumps to $3.38 billion. 3. Researchers also estimated additional costs per inpatient stay for the following types of infections: • Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus — $1,718 • Clostridium difficile — $4,617 • Infection with a different multidrug-re- sistant organism — $2,302 • Infection with more than one multi- drug-resistant organism — $3,570 "Infections associated with [multidrug-re- sistant organisms] result in a substantial cost burden to the U.S. healthcare system," researchers concluded. n How some hospitals, nursing homes are teaming up against antibiotic-resistant infections By Mackenzie Bean H ospitals and nursing homes in Illinois and California are bathing patients in the antibacterial soap ch- lorhexidine as part of two CDC-funded studies to decrease antibiotic-resistant infections, reported NPR. Three things to know: 1. The research is based on the principle that infections can spread quickly through healthcare networks. "No healthcare facility is an island. We all are in this compli- cated network," John Jernigan, MD, director of the CDC's office on healthcare-associated infections, told NPR. 2. The Illinois research project focuses on 14 nursing homes and long-term acute care hospitals in Chicago. Researchers are working with staff members to screen new patients for carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae and bathe them with chlorhexidine daily. The initiative also features a hand hygiene campaign and efforts to improve interhospital com- munications about patients with antibiotic-resistant bacteria. The study ends in September, so results are still pending. 3. In California, 36 hospitals and nursing homes in Orange County are using chlorhexidine daily on patients, along with an iodine-based nose swab. The goal is to prevent patients from getting antibiotic-resistant bacteria and stop those with the bacteria from developing infections. The project ends in May, and initial results look promising, according to NPR. After 18 months, researchers found a 25 percent drop in drug-resistant organisms among nursing home residents. n HAIs decreased in 2017, CDC report finds By Anuja Vaidya H ealthcare-associated infections decreased in the U.S. between 2016 and 2017, ac- cording to the CDC's National and State HAI Progress Report. The report includes a summary of rates for select HAIs across four settings: acute care hospitals, critical access hospitals, inpatient rehabilitation facilities and long-term acute care hospitals. Five report findings: 1. Central line-associated bloodstream infections saw a 9 percent decrease, with the largest decrease occurring in hospital wards. 2. Catheter-associated urinary tract infections dropped by 5 percent, with ICUs showing the largest decrease of 8 percent. 3. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus bac- teremia declined by 8 percent and Clostridioides difficile events reduced by 13 percent. 4. Ventilator-associated events and surgical site in- fections both decreased, by 3 percent and 1 percent respectively. The decrease in SSIs was related to 10 procedures tracked in the report. 5. There were no significant decreases or increases in abdominal hysterectomy SSIs and colon surgery SSIs. n

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