A Single-Center Multidisciplinary Initiative to Reduce Catheter-Associated Urinary Tract Infection Rates: Quality and...

Area of Science:

• Healthcare-associated infections
• Patient safety
• Hospital administration

Background:

• Catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI) is a significant patient safety concern, causing over 449,000 infections annually in the US.
• The estimated annual cost of CAUTI ranges from $115 million to $1.82 billion.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the financial impact of a low-cost CAUTI reduction program on hospital direct costs over four years.
• To evaluate the effectiveness of specific interventions in reducing CAUTI rates.

Main Methods:

• Internal revenue analysis with sensitivity analysis over four years.
• Interventions included a multidisciplinary task force, data collection, staff education, and electronic order sets with decision support.

Main Results:

• Infection rates per 1000 catheter days dropped from 5.4 to 1.5 initially, rising to 4.6 before decreasing to 2.2 after further interventions.
• Initial cost savings were $4501 per 1000 catheter days (±20%).

Conclusions:

• Provider education and electronic prompts reduced catheter use and infection rates.
• A decline in intervention focus led to increased CAUTI rates, highlighting the need for sustained efforts.
• Further interventions demonstrated the reversibility of upward trends in infection rates.