Guidelines and education reduce unnecessary catheterizations.
Catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI) is the most common healthcare-associated infection, with >560,000 nosocomial cases annually. Investigators recently assessed the effects of an intervention designed to decrease CAUTI risk by reducing inappropriate urinary catheterization. The intervention, which involved establishing guidelines, appointing nurse and physician champions, and providing education, was implemented in the emergency departments (EDs) of 18 hospitals within a Catholic nonprofit healthcare system.
The researchers analyzed a sample of 13,215 patients with hospital admission following ED visits that occurred during a 2-week baseline period, the 2-week intervention period, or the 6 months immediately after the interve…
Reviewing Author
DisclosuresConsultant/Advisory BoardPortola Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Speaker’s BureauPeerView Institute for Medical Education
Grant/Research SupportAgency for Healthcare Research and Quality; CDC; NIH–National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences; NIH–National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID); NIH–NIAID–Antibacterial Resistance Leadership Group; Merck; Pfizer; Boehringer-Ingelheim; Shire; Portola Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Novartis; bioMérieux; Siemens; Rapid Pathogen Screening; Magnolia; Stago; Innovative Biosensors; Molecular Detection, Inc.; Dyax Corp.; Trius Pharmaceuticals
DisclosuresConsultant/Advisory BoardPortola Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Speaker’s BureauPeerView Institute for Medical Education
Grant/Research SupportAgency for Healthcare Research and Quality; CDC; NIH–National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences; NIH–National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID); NIH–NIAID–Antibacterial Resistance Leadership Group; Merck; Pfizer; Boehringer-Ingelheim; Shire; Portola Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; Novartis; bioMérieux; Siemens; Rapid Pathogen Screening; Magnolia; Stago; Innovative Biosensors; Molecular Detection, Inc.; Dyax Corp.; Trius Pharmaceuticals