Pittsburgh hospital reduces neurosurgical infections by more than 80% in 2 years
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Key takeaways:
- Researchers at UPMC Mercy hospital reduced infection risk before and after surgical procedures over a 2-year period.
- The multidisciplinary effort helped to reduce infections by more than 80%.
ORLANDO — An initiative that focused on surgical patients’ paths from pre-op meetings to hospital discharge reduced neurosurgical infections by more than 80% over 2 years at a Pittsburgh hospital, researchers reported.
In 2019, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Mercy had seen excess surgical site infections (SSIs) among patients undergoing spinal fusion and laminectomy procedures but were unsure about adherence to SSI prevention recommendations by doctors or patients.
Katie Palladino, MPH, CPH, CIC, an infection preventionist at the hospital, worked with a surgeon to review the full path of a surgical patient through treatment and found a variety of opportunities for reducing risk, including improving information about chlorhexidine gluconate bathing and nasal decolonization.
“SSI prevention extends beyond the surgical suite,” Palladino said in a press release.
Palladino and colleagues established a multidisciplinary workgroup in 2020 to review medical records and assess adherence to SSI prevention recommendations.
Adherence and SSI rates were reported to the workgroup monthly for the first year of the study and then quarterly during the second year through a dashboard. From 2019 to 2021, Palladino and colleagues found that surgeon-specific infection ratio decreased by 87% and facility neurosurgery infection ratios decreased by 82%. Additionally, neurosurgery-related 90-day and 30-day readmission rates declined by 46% and 74%.
“It was important for us to bring in the other groups like physical and occupational therapy, environmental services and facilities management so they could see their role in preventing infections,” Palladino said. “Getting patients on board in their own infection prevention also proved to be a critical step in reducing SSIs and readmissions.”
References:
- Neurosurgical infections drop more than 80% in 2 years at Pittsburgh hospital. https://apic.org/neurosurgical-infections-drop-more-than-80-in-two-years-at-pittsburgh-hospital/. Published June 26, 2023. Accessed June 28, 2023.
- Palladino KJ, et al. Multidisciplinary implementation of published surgical site infection prevention recommendations is associated with improved outcomes in neurosurgical patients. Presented at: APIC 2023; June 16-28, 2023; Orlando.
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Palladino KJ, et al. Multidisciplinary implementation of published surgical site infection prevention recommendations is associated with improved outcomes in neurosurgical patients. Presented at: APIC 2023; June 16-28, 2023; Orlando.
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