Becker's Clinical Quality & Infection Control

5 INFECTION CONTROL Hospitals regain lost ground in HAI fight By Mackenzie Bean H ospitals are making strides in reducing healthcare-associated infections aer a major spike during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to new data from e Leapfrog Group. Leapfrog released its fall Hospital Safety Grades Nov. 6, the first such to reflect hospital performance post-pandemic. Leapfrog data shows a majority of hospitals have reduced rates for at least one of three commonly tracked HAIs — Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, central line-associated bloodstream infections and catheter-associated urinary tract infections — which hit a five- year high during the pandemic. Nineteen percent of hospitals reported a lower standardized infection ratio for all three HAIs and 66% improved at least one. Sixteen percent of hospitals saw the same or worse rates. "Now that we have pre- and post-pandemic data for patient safety measures, we are encouraged by the improvement in infections and applaud hospitals for reversing the disturbing infection spike we saw during the pandemic," Leah Binder, president and CEO of e Leapfrog Group, said in a news release. "However, there's still more work to be done. It's deeply concerning that patient reports about their health care experience continues to decline." Overall, 30% of hospitals received an "A" safety grade in the fall update, 24% received a "B," 39% received a "C," 7% received a "D" and less than 1% received an "F." See the list of straight-"A" and "F" hospitals. n Could hospital-acquired infections be prevented with new vaccine? By Ashleigh Hollowell H ospital-acquired infections have been on the rise in recent years, but a possible new vaccine developed by researchers could be given to patients upon arrival to help prevent antibiotic-resistant infections. e experimental vaccine candidate, developed by researchers at the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, aims to fight superbug infections like methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, which can easily spread via surfaces. Rather than activating antibodies, the experimental vaccine works by activating immune cells known as macrophages, which kill off bacteria and neutralize any bodily invaders, according to the Oct. 4 USC news release. "is is very different from developing new antibiotics," Jun Yan, lead study author and doctoral candidate at the USC Keck School of Medicine stated in the release. "is is using our own immune system to fight against different superbugs, which is a different approach than everybody else." In lab tests, the experimental vaccine was effective aer 24 hours for a duration of about 28 days. n The technique that could cut central line infection rates by 47% By Ashleigh Hollowell H aving a trained nurse or nurse team present during central line procedures or catheter insertion reduces the chance of infection for patients by 47%, according to new research from the Association for Professionals in Infection Control. "[A]dding trained observers to assist with the placement of central lines has tremendous potential to reduce infections and prevent harm," Patricia Jackson, RN, BSN, president of the APIC said about the research in an Oct. 20 news release. For the study, a team at UNC Health in Chapel Hill, N.C., trained a team of nurses to oversee a clinical checklist for central line infection-prevention techniques. The nurse team was tasked with providing 24/7 support for all central line procedures at the hospital. Within the program's first three years, between 2019 and 2022, "the proportion of such infections among patients whose insertions were assisted by the nursing team decreased from 19% before program implementation to 10% in year three, for an overall reduction of 47%," according to the research, which was published Oct. 20 in the American Journal of Infection Control. n

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