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Contact precautions for multidrug-resistant organisms: Current recommendations and actual practice
Sarah A Clock1, Bevin Cohen, Maryam Behta
1Center for Interdisciplinary Research to Reduce Antimicrobial Resistance, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA.
American Journal of Infection Control
|November 17, 2009
Summary
Contact precautions adherence is low, especially for hand hygiene, despite available supplies. Monitoring and correcting nonadherent practices are crucial for infection control in hospitals.
Area of Science:
- Infection Prevention and Control
- Hospital Epidemiology
- Patient Safety
Background:
- Contact precautions are recommended for patients with multidrug-resistant organisms.
- Actual rates of contact precaution implementation are not well-documented.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the availability of supplies and adherence to contact precautions.
- To identify factors influencing adherence in a hospital setting.
Main Methods:
- Direct observation of staff and visitor adherence to contact precautions.
- Data collection across 3 sites in a New York City hospital network.
- Recording availability of isolation carts and personal protective equipment.
Main Results:
- Contact precaution signs were present for 85.4% of indicated patients.
- Gown and glove availability varied (49.4%-95.2%), with lower adherence for hand hygiene (19.4%-48.4%).
- Adherence was better in ICUs and among patient care staff, with compliance predicting further adherence.
Conclusions:
- Monitoring and correcting nonadherent practices are essential components of infection control programs.
- Targeted interventions may improve contact precaution compliance.
- Standardizing monitoring methods can enhance infection prevention efforts.
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