Infection control and hospital epidemiology : the official journal of the Society of Hospital Epidemiologists of America
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Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · Sep 2014
Usability and impact of a computerized clinical decision support intervention designed to reduce urinary catheter utilization and catheter-associated urinary tract infections.
To evaluate the usability and effectiveness of a computerized clinical decision support (CDS) intervention aimed at reducing the duration of urinary tract catheterizations. ⋯ A urinary catheter removal reminder system was successfully integrated within a healthcare system's electronic health record. The usability of the reminder was highly dependent on its user interface, with a homegrown version of the reminder resulting in higher impact than a stock reminder.
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Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · Aug 2014
Pseudo-outbreak of Phaeoacremonium parasiticum from a hospital ice dispenser.
In 31 patients, Phaeoacremonium parasiticum was recovered from bronchoscopy specimens (biopsies and aspirates). The pseudo-outbreak was caused by contaminated ice used to control hemorrhage during bronchoscopy and was associated with deficiencies in equipment cleaning. The bronchoscopy technique was modified, the ice dispenser was disinfected, bronchoscope reprocessing was improved, and there were no recurrences.
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Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol · Aug 2014
An economic model: value of antimicrobial-coated sutures to society, hospitals, and third-party payers in preventing abdominal surgical site infections.
While the persistence of high surgical site infection (SSI) rates has prompted the advent of more expensive sutures that are coated with antimicrobial agents to prevent SSIs, the economic value of such sutures has yet to be determined. ⋯ Our results suggest that switching to triclosan-coated sutures from the uncoated sutures can both prevent SSIs and save substantial costs for hospitals, third-party payers, and society, as long as efficacy in preventing SSIs is at least 10% and SSI risk is at least 10%.