Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/903742
11 INFECTION CONTROL & PATIENT SAFETY How Drones Could Improve Neonatal Infection Control By Mackenzie Bean R esearchers from the University of South Australia are studying the use of drones to remotely measure patients' vital signals, according to The Lead. Researchers believe the drones, which use advanced im- age-processing systems to assess heart and breathing rates from afar, could help reduce infections in neonatal care. "The norm is to stick electrodes on children to measure heart rates," project supervisor Javaan Chahl, PhD, a sensory systems professor at the university, told The Lead. "Without any ill-intention, sometimes doctors in devel- oping countries would reuse these electrodes due to a shortage of instruments. This has led to an infection con- trol problem, where you may move skin infections from one child to the next. So, you can see a need for having a non-contact sensor." The technology could also be used to read the vital signals of elderly patients in care facilities, people in war zones, victims of natural disasters or those stranded in remote areas. Dr. Chahl, who has been working on the project for three years, said research will continue for at least another year. n CDC: 'Dangerous Minority' of Providers Engage in Unsafe Injection Practices By Anuja Vaidya A study published in the American Journal of Infection Control examined provider knowledge, attitudes and practices related to unsafe injection practices. Researchers from the CDC recruited 370 physicians and 320 nurses from eight states to complete an online sur- vey. The questions assessed providers' attitudes toward acceptability and frequency of unsafe practices, such as reusing a syringe on more than one patient. Survey results show unsafe injection practices take place across all surveyed physician specialties and nurse practice locations. Around 12.4 percent of physicians and 3 percent of nurses indicated syringes were reused for more than one patient in their workplace. Nearly 5 percent of physicians indicated this practice "usually or always occurs." "There is a dangerous minority of providers violating basic standards of care; practice patterns may vary by provider group and specialty," study authors concluded. n How Liquid, Gel and Foam Stack Up for Alcohol-Based Hand Rubs By Anuja Vaidya A study published in the Journal of Hospital Infec- tion examined the comparative efficacy of alco- hol-based hand rubs in liquid, gel or foam form. The researchers focused on alcohol-based hand rubs containing isopropanol or ethanol. To determine efficacy, they conducted European Standard EN 1500 tests with 20 volunteers. They performed an EN 1500 test for each 3 milliliter formulation of the liquid, gel or foam hand rubs. To determine drying time, researchers tested 1.5 and 3.0 ml of the three formulations on 15 volunteers. Volunteers self-reported when their hands were dry. The study showed no difference in antibacterial efficacy between the three formulations. However, ethanol-based hand rubs tended to dry faster than isopropanol-based rubs. For both types of rubs, gels took longer to dry than other formulations. n Study: Statins Reduce Risk of Bloodstream Infections 27% By Brian Zimmerman P atients who take statins for heart disease prevention have a 27 percent reduced risk of experiencing a Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream infection outside the hospital setting, according to a study published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings. For the study, researchers analyzed the health records of nearly 30,000 people compiled between 2000 to 2011 in Danish medical registries. e researchers identified 2,638 cases of S. aureus blood- stream infections contracted outside of the hospital setting. e team then compared these cases with 26,379 controls matched for age, sex and residence. Individuals taking statins displayed a 27 percent lower risk of contracting S. aureus infections compared to their matched coun- terparts. is decreased risk was even more pronounced among elderly adults with diabetes, kidney disease or liver disease. "Our results indicate that statins may have an important place in the prevention of bloodstream infection caused by S. aureus, which would hold important clinical and public health implications," said Jesper Smit, MD, PhD, a physician in the department of infectious diseases at Aalborg (Denmark) University Hospital and the study's lead author. "Nevertheless, our observations warrant confirmation in other settings and the biological mechanisms by which statin treatment may protect against this type of infection should be explored further." n