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Background
Infection preventionists rely upon the information provided by the clinical microbiology
laboratory to determine whether or not an infection should be reported. However, few
infection preventionists understand or are aware of what procedures, policies, and
behavior occur within the microbiology laboratory that directly influences the patient
data that they use for their surveillance reporting as well as their infection prevention
response. This presentation will teach infection preventionists the often unknown
processes performed by the microbiology laboratory and its direct impact on their
reporting to the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) and their institution's
internal data.
Methods
This study will systematically address the common policies and procedures performed
related to the collection, transport, and diagnostic reporting of patient specimens
that influence surveillance reporting criteria of multidrug-resistant organisms and
Clostridioides difficile Infection (MDRO/CDI), urinary tract infection (catheter-associated
and non-catheter-associated), central line associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI),
and surgical site infection (SSI) to NHSN.
Results
Accepted policies, procedures, and processes vary widely across clinical microbiology
laboratories. Infection preventionists need to be aware of how these differences can
lead to potential errors in their reporting and the true burden of infection within
their institution. Without understanding the basics of how the clinical laboratory
information is resulted, it is impossible to guarantee accurate reporting to NHSN
and appropriate infection prevention response.
Conclusions
It is the goal of this presentation to equip infection preventionists with the knowledge
of what may occur within their own institution's microbiology laboratory and provide
guidance on how to collaborate with their laboratory colleagues to ensure that what
they report to NHSN is transparent and accurate. The information provided in this
presentation should ultimately lead to a more impactful infection prevention program.
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Identification
Copyright
© 2022 Published by Elsevier Inc.
