or septic shock. Bloodstream infections, including sepsis, following surgery occur at a rate of 5.23 percent, meaning that more than five percent of all surgical patients will develop an infection.
Patients who need help breathing may be placed on a ventilator. Ventilators have tubes that run down the throat and into the airway. The machine helps expand and retract the lungs and helps the patient breathe easier. Unfortunately, ventilators have been known to increase the risk of pneumonia. Ventilator tubes may provide an avenue for bacteria to travel into the lungs. Pneumonia, as a bacterial infection, is a common cause of sepsis in hospitals.
Strategies to Prevent HAIs and Sepsis in Hospitals
Due to some of the concerning rates of HAIs in U.S. hospitals, the CDC has initiated a series of prevention strategies. These strategies use surveillance, laboratory research, and outbreak investigations to develop improved prevention techniques. The CDC offers healthcare providers with toolkits and other information about how to prevent HAIs and protect providers and patients from infection. The CDC has specific guidelines for infection control and prevention, including:
- Disinfection and sterilization
- Hand hygiene
- Proper handling of laundry
- Environmental infection control
- Isolation precautions
- Multidrug-resistant organisms (MDRO)
- Catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI)
- Organ transplantation
- Surgical site infection (SSI)
- Dialysis infection control
- Disease/organism-specific infection control guidelines:
- Tuberculosis (TB)
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has also developed a committee dedicated to the prevention of HAIs and sepsis in hospitals. The HHS Steering Committee for the Prevention of Healthcare-Associated Infections began in 2008 and continues offer support for prevention strategies and healthcare education. The Committee developed a National Action Plan to Prevent Healthcare-Associated Infections: Road Map to Elimination, which includes the following:
- Phase