WMJ : official publication of the State Medical Society of Wisconsin
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Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) traditionally has been recognized as a virulent pathogen affiliated with health care institutions. However, community-associated strains of MRSA (CA-MRSA) have emerged over the past several years in young, healthy patients without significant health care contact. ⋯ CA-MRSA predominantly induces skin and soft tissue infections, though the presence of unique virulence factors may cause potentially lethal necrotizing pneumonia and other invasive infections. In response to this growing public health concern, clinicians must learn to identify risk factors for CA-MRSA, treat infections with judicious use of antimicrobial agents, and facilitate prevention strategies to limit transmission.
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Medicine is increasingly practiced through the application of information sciences. Medical informatics deals with optimal information use within bioinformatics, imaging, clinical, and population health domains. Population health informatics plays an important role in that it critically informs practice in each of the other domains. ⋯ A number of federal initiatives are underway to address this problem, including the development of a framework for a national health information network and funding for implementation. This network will be facilitated by federal leadership, but public and private partnerships, and state, regional, and local implementation and policy development will play a critical role. In this article, we describe several Wisconsin initiatives that are keys to developing a strategic framework and building the state's electronic health information infrastructure.