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ON May 23rd, 2008, the French Ministry of Health launched a national hand cleanliness campaign targeting health care workers, patients, and the general public. The campaign emphasizes that proper hand hygiene is the key element in preventing and controlling nosocomial infections.
It is critical that a through cleansing of one’s hands with a liquid alcohol solution containing an emollient to protect the skin precedes all health care treatments, no matter where they are carried out. All health care establishments throughout the country should see to it that these solutions are available at patient’s bed. Health care workers would also be required to carry a small bottle of disinfectant in the pockets of their uniform. |
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Written by Christine Besson
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Monday, 27 November 2006 |
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 One of the essential weapon to limit the propagation of nosocomial infections are rapid diagnostic tests.
The sooner the patient is being diagnosed, the faster he may be isolated, and treated with appropriate measures and the rooms disinfected as well.
The current test costs 21$, 10 times as much as the traditional test, but it allows for results in one hour compared to 48 up to 72 hours with the former. It must be remembered that a C.difficile infection is extremely costly for a hospital : 15 000$ extra per patient. Detecting patients infected faster allows for a better control of the infection thus reducing possible transmission, less suffering and eventually less deaths.
Hôpital Laval in Québec uses this test currently.
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Written by Christine Besson
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Thursday, 16 November 2006 |
 The latest Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containement Council report for 2005 reveals staggering statistics.
Here are some figures:
- Average hospital charge for a patient with hospital-acquired infection: 182 260 US$
- Average hospital charge for a patient without hospital-acquired infection: 31 389 US$
- Average length of stay for a patient with hospital-acquired infection: 20,6 days
- Average length of stay for a patient without hospital-acquired infection: 4,5 days
- Total cost of these infections for 2005: 3,5 billion
According to Marc Volvka, executive director of Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containement Council
"It's time that hospitals, patients and those who pay the bill know how many patients develop hospital-acquired infections, the type of infections they develop and the quality and cost implications," Volavka said. "The more information that becomes available, the better the focus will be on preventing these infections."
One must always remember that behind these figures, there are victims with a lot of suffering and devastating consequences on their personal, social and economic life. |
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Written by Christine Besson
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Sunday, 12 November 2006 |
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 Some 1.4 million people worldwide are ill because of infections acquired in hospitals. In a public conference, on Nov. 10 2006, the United Nations health agency declared that yet the most efficient approach to tackle the scourge is the simplest: clean hands are safe hands.
All healthcare providers need to clean their hands every time they see a patient. UN World Health Organization ( WHO) Acting Director-General Anders Nordstrom stressed. “With the help of WHO and other partners all the countries engaged in the WHO campaign are laying the foundations for patients everywhere to receive cleaner, safer care.”
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Written by Christine Besson
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Sunday, 12 November 2006 |
 At the end of this month, Malta will be joining the World Health Organisation Global Patient Safety Alliance and as from next year, the government will embark on a project aimed at reducing hospital-acquired infections, Health, Elderly and Community Care Minister Louis Deguara said yesterday.
He was speaking during the Euromed Conference on Antibiotic Resistance in the Mediterranean Region organised by the ARMed Project of the Infection Control Unit of St Luke’s Hospital.
The conference provided a first-time opportunity for stakeholders in the Euro-Mediterranean zone to discuss how antimicrobial resistance specifically impacts upon the Mediterranean region. The academic programme will present up-to-date information from epidemiological studies on antimicrobial resistance undertaken in the countries in this area. Discussion groups will allow delegates to share their experiences in addressing antimicrobial resistance and the important drivers for its control: effective antibiotic stewardship and infection control practices.
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Written by Christine Besson
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Sunday, 12 November 2006 |
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 The Intensive Care Unit at The University of Kentucky Hospital is being disinfected thoroughly due to the presence of the bacteria Acinetobacter that infected 4 patients since September. The disinfection process lasts 36 hours during which the units are shut down completely. The procedure is a standard part of 's infection control protocol.
The bacillus can be resistant to several common antibiotics. It is present in the environment, even on some patients’ skin without causing any symptoms to healthy people, but in hospital patients, with a weakened immune system, it can cause a number of opportunistic infections, including pneumonias and serious blood or wound infections very resistant to antibiotics. It can live up to a month on any flat surface.
Most hospitals are now coping with infectious organisms that have mutated and become more and more resistant to common antibiotics. Next week, the Pennsylvania Health Care Cost Containment Council will release its annual report on hospital-acquired infections with data on the number of patients who suffered and/or died from these infections at each hospital in Pennsylvania |
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