American journal of infection control
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Am J Infect Control · Oct 2012
Indwelling urinary catheter management and catheter-associated urinary tract infection prevention practices in Nurses Improving Care for Healthsystem Elders hospitals.
Indwelling urinary catheters (IUCs) are commonly used in hospitalized patients, especially elders. Catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) account for 34% of all health care associated infections in the United States, associated with excess morbidity and health care costs. Adherence to CAUTI prevention practices has not been well described. ⋯ Although many CAUTI prevention practices at NICHE hospitals are in alignment with evidence-based guidelines, there is room for improvement. Further research is needed to identify the effect of enhanced compliance with CAUTI prevention practices on the prevalence of CAUTI in NICHE hospitals.
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Am J Infect Control · Oct 2012
Wide variation in adoption of screening and infection control interventions for multidrug-resistant organisms: a national study.
We performed a survey of National Healthcare Safety Network hospitals in 2008 to describe adoption of screening and infection control policies aimed at multidrug-resistant organisms (MDRO) in intensive care units (ICUs) and identify predictors of their presence, monitoring, and implementation. ⋯ This study found wide variation in adoption of MDRO screening and infection control interventions, which may reflect differences in published recommendations or their interpretation. Further research is needed to provide additional insight on effective strategies and how best to promote compliance.
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Am J Infect Control · Oct 2012
The short-term and long-term effectiveness of a multidisciplinary hand hygiene improvement program.
Although hand hygiene (HH) compliance has been an important issue for years, the compliance rate is still a problem in health care today. ⋯ Our multifaceted HH improvement program resulted in a sustained improvement of HH knowledge and compliance in nurses as well as physicians.
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Am J Infect Control · Oct 2012
Impact on hand hygiene compliance following migration to a new hospital with improved resources and the sequential introduction of World Health Organization recommendations.
One commonly cited reason for inadequate hand hygiene (HH) in health care facilities is lack of handwashing sinks and alcohol hand rub (AHR). ⋯ Our results suggest that, on their own, better resources do not offer any guarantees of improved HH practices. However, once in place, audit and feedback-coupled with genuine administrative support and fostering of individual accountability-appear to be effective change tools to increase HH compliance.
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Am J Infect Control · Oct 2012
Hand hygiene knowledge and practices of nursing students in Singapore.
Hand hygiene is an important means of preventing nosocomial infections. Studies have shown a <50% compliance rate for hand hygiene among health care workers. A hand hygiene survey was administered to nursing students in a tertiary institution in Singapore. The results of this survey strongly indicate that nursing students understand the importance of hand hygiene compliance and perceive clinical internship programs and practical laboratory sessions to be effective methods of hand hygiene education.