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Welcome to The HAI Chronicle, a new quarterly resource from Oregon Health Authority, where we're excited to share insights and expertise in the captivating world of healthcare associated infections (HAIs), infection prevention (IP), and antimicrobial stewardship. This newsletter is more than just a collection of information—it's a celebration of the great work happening statewide. We can't wait to connect with the HAI community and provide updates that will help us all to stay one step ahead. We look forward to working with you to continue to make strides in preventing infections, enhancing patient safety, and building a healthier future together. |
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We released our hospital HAI data dashboard, which displays data on reportable HAIs from 2016 to 2021 for Oregon’s 61 hospitals. The interactive dashboard includes statewide data summaries and facility-specific data on nine HAI measures, with national benchmarks for comparison.
Takeaways
- Oregon hospitals had increases in HAIs during 2021, similar to trends seen nationally. The largest increases were for catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI) and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus blood stream infections (MRSA BSI). Oregon hospitals also had increases in surgical site infections (SSI).
- CAUTI, MRSA BSI, and SSI should be priority areas for improvement.
- Oregon hospitals made progress with Clostridioides difficile infections (CDI) and outperformed hospitals nationally for central line-associated blood stream infections (CLABSI).
The dashboard displays data on three tabs:
- Overview: 2021 statewide data snapshot.
- Trends: Data from 2016 through 2021 at the state, regional, and county levels.
- HAI metric: Facility-specific data for each type of healthcare associated infection (e.g., central line-associated blood stream infections) with interactive maps, tables, and filters.
You can download facility-specific data with the “Download Data” button on the top right of the dashboard.
Have questions about the dashboard? Contact Lisa Iguchi, HAI Reporting Epidemiologist at lisa.c.iguchi@oha.oregon.gov.
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Infectious Insights
Candida auris is an emerging fungus that causes serious infections, with 1 in 3 serious infections leading to death. C. auris can live on surfaces for several weeks and is transmitted in health care facilities.
To prevent the spread of C.auris, make sure to wash your hands (or use hand sanitizer) before and after contact with patient or their environment and use a disinfectant that is effective against C.auris.
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Stay up to date with the latest news and updates in the field of infection prevention. In this section, we share noteworthy policy changes, guidelines, research findings, highlight recent developments within our team, and provide insights on emerging pathogens and antibiotic resistance.
- An urgent care antimicrobial stewardship initiative achieved and sustained a significant reduction in antibiotic prescribing for respiratory conditions, providing a model for other health care systems. (5/23)
- A new treatment is the first approved for candidemia and invasive candidiasis in over a decade. (3/23)
- According to CDC and OHA, increases in HAIs were observed during periods of peak COVID-19 activity, reversing some of the critical progress in HAI prevention made over the past decade. Oregon moved from ranking 11th in fall 2022 to 32nd in spring 2023. (5/23)
- Carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae (CRKP) causes a considerable number of neonatal infections and leads to high neonatal mortality. A new study describes the worldwide prevalence of CRKP neonatal infections. (6/23)
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Stay ahead with our upcoming events! Mark your calendars for informative lunch and learns, webinars/trainings and key due dates. Don't miss out on these opportunities to expand your knowledge and network. And if you have an event you’d like to share with others, reach out to us!
Project Firstline Lunch & Learn - July 19th, 12:00 - 1:00PM
Open to local public health authority staff.
Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology Oregon & Southwest Washington Chapter (OSWAPIC) Monthly Meeting — August 11th, 1:00-3:00 PM
Project Firstline Lunch & Learn— August 16th, 12:00-1:00 PM
Open to local public health authority staff.
Oregon Healthcare Associated Infections Advisory Committee (HAIAC) Quarterly Meeting — September 13th, 1:00-3:00 PM
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Get to know the exceptional members of our HAI team. This quarter, we introduce Lisa Iguchi!
Lisa is our HAI reporting epidemiologist within the HAI Epidemiology and Data Systems Team. She has been with the Oregon Health Authority for seven years and oversees surveillance of data reported by health care facilities into the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN). Lisa also leads the development of our HAI program’s data dashboards and helps with data analysis and reporting needs for the program. While she enjoys working with the data, she is grateful that her role allows her to interact directly with partners at health care facilities; most recently she has developed relationships with many long-term care facility partners through her work coordinating the reporting of COVID-19 vaccination data. Originally from Hawaii, Lisa enjoys exploring the Pacific Northwest, and getting out to different regions to hike and try new restaurants.
Feel free to reach out to Lisa at lisa.c.iguchi@oha.oregon.gov if you have any questions about NHSN or HAI reporting.
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Not treating asymptomatic bacteriuria (ASB) is an important way to improve the proper use of antibiotics. A recent study found that screening for ASB is generally not recommended for most patients. The study showed that removing urine cultures from preoperative checklists for heart surgeries led to a 50% decrease in antibiotic prescriptions for bacteriuria, with no significant increase in infections.
Takeaways
- Most patients don't need to be tested for a urinary tract infection (UTI) unless they have symptoms, as recommended by the IDSA Guideline for the Management of Asymptomatic Bacteriuria.
- If bacteria are found in the urine without symptoms of an infection, antibiotics usually aren't necessary except in certain cases, such as urologic surgery or pregnancy.
- Overusing antibiotics contributes to the growing problem of antimicrobial resistance.
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Have questions about HAIs or antimicrobial stewardship? We've got you covered! In our HAI Help Desk section, we answer reader-submitted queries related to healthcare associated infections. Read on to find practical advice, expert insights, and other resources to support your infection prevention efforts. And send us your questions!
What does it mean to be "colonized" with a bacteria?
When someone is colonized with bacteria, it means the bacteria are present in or on their body, but the person is not sick or showing any signs of illness. Many healthy people can have bacteria in or on their body without it causing any problems.
On the other hand, clinical disease occurs when someone is infected with bacteria that overcome the body's defenses and cause the immune system to react, making the person sick.
Whether a person goes from being colonized to infected depends on several factors, such as the type of bacteria, the person's immune system, other medical conditions they might have, and the environment. Healthy individuals might not have clinical disease even if they have bacteria, while someone with a weaker immune system or certain health problems might be more likely to get infected.
It's important to remember that even though colonization doesn't make the person sick, they can still spread the bacteria to others who could become infected. That's why it's crucial to practice good hygiene and take preventive measures to stop the spread of bacteria from colonized individuals.
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Enjoy a dose of infectious humor with a HAI-larious joke that's sure to brighten your day! Have a great joke in mind? Send us your jokes and we’ll feature you in one of our upcoming newsletters.
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Your co-worker called in sick. What illness did they have?
A staff infection.
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Sign up for our newsletter to receive regular updates, explore new resources added to our website, and reach out to us with any questions or ideas you'd like to see in future newsletters. Let us know!
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Oregon Health Authority works to transform the health care system in Oregon by lowering and containing costs, improving quality and increasing access to care to improve the lifelong health of Oregonians. OHA is overseen by the nine-member citizen Oregon Health Policy Board working toward comprehensive health reform in our state.
Oregon Public Health Division’s HAI Programs are dedicated to preventing and containing healthcare associated infections (HAIs) and addressing the growing challenge of antimicrobial resistance (AR). Through initiatives such as the Antimicrobial Resistance Laboratory Network (AR Lab Network) and the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN), we are bolstering our ability to detect and respond to antimicrobial resistance while strengthening the nation's most widely used HAI tracking system. We also focus on antimicrobial stewardship to improve the appropriate use of antibiotics, and we provide comprehensive infection prevention and control (IPC) education and training to equip the health care workforce with the necessary skills. Our team further offers IPC consultations to health care facilities throughout the state, providing expert guidance and support in implementing effective infection prevention strategies and responding to outbreaks. Together, we are committed to enhancing patient safety and reducing the impact of HAIs and antimicrobial resistance.
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This document can be provided upon request in alternate formats for individuals with disabilities or in a language other than English for people with limited English skills. To request this publication in another format or language, follow this link or call 971-673-1111 (voice) or 711 for TTY.
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