Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 4, 2026
An In Vitro Bladder Model of Catheter-Associated Urinary Tract Infection
Published on: June 24, 2025
A multifaceted intervention to reduce rates of catheter-associated urinary tract infections in a resource-limited
L Gayani Tillekeratne1, Darren R Linkin2, Mariah Obino3
1Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA.
Background:
Health care-associated infections such as catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) are prevalent in resource-limited settings. This study was carried out to determine whether a multifaceted intervention targeting health care personnel would reduce CAUTI rates in a public hospital located in a resource-limited setting.
Methods:
A one group, pretest-posttest study was carried out from March to July 2012 in a public district hospital in Nairobi, Kenya. Patients admitted to adult medical wards, and who received urinary catheters, were evaluated for symptomatic CAUTIs using a modified definition by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. After collecting baseline CAUTI rates for 8 weeks, a multifaceted intervention consisting of lectures, reminder signs, and infection prevention rounds (week 9) was implemented. The postintervention rate of CAUTIs was measured over 7 subsequent weeks. Bivariable analysis was performed to determine whether the intervention was associated with reduced CAUTIs.
Results:
A total of 125 patients received urinary catheters, with 82 preintervention and 43 postintervention. Mean duration of catheterization did not change between phases (6.9 vs 5.6 days, respectively, P = .322), but catheter utilization ratio decreased from 0.14 to 0.09 (P < .001). There were 13 preintervention CAUTIs (for 30.4 infections per 1,000 catheter-days) and no postintervention CAUTIs (P = .002).
Conclusion:
In this resource-limited setting, the baseline rate of CAUTIs was high. A low-cost, multifaceted intervention resulted in decreased urinary catheter use and CAUTI rates.
Related Concept Videos
01:17Urinary Tract Infection IV: Nursing Management
01:30Urinary Tract Infection III: Diagnostic Studies and Interprofessional Care
01:22Healthcare Associated Infections II: Preventive Measures
The best practices for preventing healthcare-associated infections include hand hygiene, patient risk...
01:26Urine Studies II: Urine Culture and Sensitivity Test
01:26Urinary Tract Infection I: Introduction
01:26Healthcare Associated Infections I: Iatrogenic, Exogenic and Endogenic
HAIs significantly increase the cost of health care. Extended stays in healthcare institutions, increased disability, increased costs of medications, including specialized antibiotics, and prolonged recovery times add to the patient's expenses and the healthcare institution and funding bodies.