Editor's Note Fresh white coats should be used by nurses for every shift to minimize the risk of infection, and coats should be made of fabric types that minimize microbial contamination, finds this study. The microbial load of nurses’ white coats made of a polyester cotton blend or polyester fabric…

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Editor's Note Enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) and fast track surgery protocols were associated with a significant reduction in postoperative lung, urinary tract, and surgical site infections, compared with conventional protocols in this study. ERAS and fast track protocols also were linked to a significant decrease in hospital length of…

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Editor's Note A new blog from the Joint Commission on Infection Prevention & Control covers experiences, case studies, and news for infection preventionists. The latest blog post details the BoosterPak for High-Level Disinfection and Sterilization processes, which is applicable to hospitals, critical access hospitals, plus ambulatory and office-based surgery settings.…

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Surgical site infections (SSIs) not only harm patients, but also can squeeze a hospital’s bottom line through increased costs and reduced reimbursement. Patients undergoing colorectal surgery are particularly at risk for SSIs, according to data from the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN), but an effective multidisciplinary team and an evidence-based…

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Surgical site infections (SSIs) are a major cause of morbidity in surgical patients, leading to increased length of stay and healthcare costs. No single intervention has demonstrated efficacy in reducing SSIs. When SSIs rose to a rate of 16.3% in 2013 at St Elizabeth Boardman Hospital in Boardman, Ohio, perioperative…

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Editor's Note Surgical site infection (SSI) risk for coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) and hip arthroplasty patients is highest in hospitals with low annual procedure volumes, yet these hospitals are excluded from quality reporting, this study finds. Even for high-volume hospitals, year-to-year variation in SSI rates makes past performance an…

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Editor's Note Hospital-acquired conditions (HACs) fell 21% (3.1 million) between 2010 and 2015, saving nearly 125,000 lives and $28 billion in health care costs, according to a December 12 report from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). Among the findings: Adverse drug events were down 42.3%. Pressure ulcers…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission on December 9 issued new and revised National Patient Safety Goals (NPSGs) on catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) that will be effective January 1, 2017. The new NPSG will apply to accredited nursing care centers, and the revised NPSGs will apply to accredited hospitals and…

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Editor's Note Medicare’s Nonpayment Program of 2008, which withholds hospital reimbursement for costs related to hospital-acquired conditions (HACs), was associated with a decline in the incidence of selected HACs in this study. The decline was greater in hospitals with higher Medicare utilization ratios (MURs). In this analysis of nearly 868,000…

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Editor's Note The American College of Surgeons (ACS) and Surgical Infection Society (SIS) on December 1 announced their newly released guidelines for the prevention, detection, and management of surgical site infections (SSIs). The guidelines give clinicians step-by-step ways to address SSIs and educate patients on ways to contribute to their…

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