• J. Hosp. Infect. · Aug 2019

    Healthcare-associated infections and antimicrobial use in long-term care facilities (HALT3): an overview of the Italian situation.

    • M F Furmenti, P Rossello, S Bianco, E Olivero, R Thomas, I N Emelurumonye, C M Zotti, and HALT3 Italian Collaborating Group.
    • Department of Public Health and Paediatrics, University of Turin, Turin, Italy.
    • J. Hosp. Infect. 2019 Aug 1; 102 (4): 425-430.

    BackgroundAwareness of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) and antimicrobial use in long-term care facilities (LTCFs) is increasing. In 2017, the third national point prevalence survey (PPS) was conducted in Italy as part of the third 'Healthcare-Associated Infections in European Long-Term Care Facilities' (HALT3) study.AimTo report the results of HALT3 and analyse the resident population of LTCFs, implementation of good practices, prevalence of infections and antimicrobial use.MethodsThe survey was designed as a PPS, carried out from April to June 2017. All residents who lived full-time in the institution were included. All facilities were asked to complete an institutional questionnaire, a ward list for all residents, and a resident questionnaire for those residents presenting with signs/symptoms of active infection and/or receiving an antimicrobial agent.FindingsIn total, 418 facilities took part in the study; 24,132 residents were eligible, and most were aged >85 years, disoriented and incontinent. The prevalence of HAIs was 3.9%, and 50% of the institutions reported that they had a professional trained in infection control on their staff. Only 26.4% of infections were confirmed by a microbiological sample, and 26.9% of the isolated micro-organisms were resistant to at least one antimicrobial class. In total, 1022 residents received at least one antimicrobial agent, and cephalosporins were prescribed most commonly.ConclusionThe number of infection control and antimicrobial stewardship measures implemented was found to be considerably higher in this study compared with previous studies. This could lead to a reduction in the prevalence of HAIs, antimicrobial use and antimicrobial resistance. Further studies are needed to monitor these aspects.Copyright © 2019 The Healthcare Infection Society. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

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