ADVIN.ORG - Association for the Défense of Victims of Nosocomial Infections

The European Council has issued a report The Council Conclusions on innovative incentives for effective antibiotics underlying the urgency to adopt new and inovative measures in favor of efficient antibiotics. Control and prevention of hospital-acquired infecions are closely associated to efficient antibiotherapy. «Prevention and control of antibiotic resistance and healthcare associated infections is a cost-effective strategy which contributes to the overall financial sustainability of healthcare systems and ensures continuous quality and patient safety improvements.»

According to many studies, health care staff who are not vaccinated are the main cause of flu contamination within a hospital during an epidemic. In Quebec, Canada, the majority of health care staff (89%) are now being vaccinated, thus protecting patients from contamination. In France, the public health organisation   «Haute Autorité de Santé», composed of experts and recognized health authorities, issued the following statement on September 7th. «Health care professionals  refusing to be vaccinated run the risk of being the first link in the chain of nosocomial contamination».

The ECDC, European Center fo Disease Prevention and  Control, organized, November 18, the European Antibiotic Awarenes Day. The aim of the Day was to provide an annual opportunity for awareness raising about the threat to public health of antibiotic resistance and how to use antibiotics responsibly. To watch the video click here.

The rate of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus has doubled between 1999 and 2006, an increase caused almost entirely by community-acquired bacteria strains, according to a new CDC report. MRSA, which can  cause lethal infections, kills about 20,000 each year in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).