Hospital Acquired Infections Ernest Oppong & Leyla Chiepodeu University of Virginia’s College at Wise Nursing BACKGROUNDPURPOSE Hospital associated infections are a major public health problem. According to the Centers for disease Control and Prevention (CDC), There were an estimated 1.7 million Hospital Acquired Infections and 99,000 deaths from infections in 2012, making it the one of the top leading causes of death. Discuss risks factors associated with Ventilator Associated Pneumonia (VAP) and Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA). Explore methods that will help to reduce or eliminate its occurrence. Ventilator Associated Pneumonia Risks Factors include the duration on mechanical ventilator, immune suppression, preexisting lung disease and depressed level of consciousness. Duration on MV: Patients who are on the ventilator for more than 48 hours have a higher risk of developing ventilator associated pneumonia. It is important to check their ability to breathe on their own so the patient can be taken off as soon as possible. A patient who has a weak immune system, such as someone with a chronic disease like COPD; they are at greater risk for developing bacterial pneumonia because they lack the necessary defense mechanisms to protect themselves MRSA Risk factors include prolonged hospital stay, clients who have open wounds, immunosuppressed patients and non- compliance with antibiotic medication therapy. YTD Infection rates RISK FACTORS 1. Blot, S., Serra, M., Koulenti, D., Lisboa, T., Deja, M.,Myrianthefs, P., Manno,E., Diaz, E.,Topeli, A., Martin-Loeches, I., Rello, J., (2011). Patient to nurse ratio and risk of ventilator-associated pneumonia in critically ill patients. 20: McNicoll, L., &Marsella, M. (2010). The Growing Problem of Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus: Will Hospitals Prevail?. Medicine & Health Rhode Island, 93(9), Research shows that with proper isolation techniques, proper hand washing and the appropriate use of PPE, hospital acquired infections like MRSA and Ventilator Associated Pneumonia can be greatly reduced. VENTILATOR ASSOCIATED PNEUMONIA Methods to prevent VAP include standard precautions, mouth care, head of bed alarms, use of oral rather than nasal endotracheal and finally the conversion to tracheostomy tube when ventilation is no longer need. Standard precautions: Washing hand with hand sanitizer before and after patient contact unless hands are visibly soiled. Use soap and water when hands are visibly soiled. Wearing gloves. Mouth care with chlorhexidine should be done every 2 hours or at least 12 times in a 24 hr period. Head of the bed should be elevated higher than 30 degrees unless conditions do not allow this to occur. The use of oral rather than nasal endotracheal tube MRSA Preventing transfer of pathogens with good hand hygiene. Provide teaching and information to the client about the importance of taking the full course of antibiotics. Strict decontamination of each room before patients are assigned to them. Teaching client’s importance of hygiene and how to make sure their caregivers are observing hand hygiene practices while providing care. Visitors of clients under precautions should be required to wear PPE. JCMC Overall Infection Counts FY12 YTD RESULTS CONCLUSIONS REFERENCES MATERIALS AND METHODS Thorough and rigorous review of 16 appropriate peer reviewed nursing research articles. Collection of infection rate data from local hospitals to monitor for trends in infection occurrence.