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Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Prevalence of HAIs and the Use of Antibiotics in an Italian University Hospital

Authors :
Marco DETTORI
Antonella Arghittu
Alessandra PALMIERI
Paolo Castiglia
Maria Dolores MASIA
Giovanna Deiana
Antonio Alfredo AZARA
Davide Gentili
Source :
Healthcare; Volume 10; Issue 9; Pages: 1597
Publication Year :
2022
Publisher :
MDPI AG, 2022.

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has massively affected healthcare systems globally, causing a possible reduction in attention to traditional infection prevention programs. The objective of this study was to estimate the prevalence of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) and the use of antimicrobials in an Italian University Hospital and to investigate whether the intensification of hospital infection control measures during the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the prevalence of bacterial HAIs. A point prevalence survey was conducted according to the simplified ECDC protocol. The survey identified a local HAI prevalence of 9.0%, revealing an increase compared to pre-pandemic values (7.3%). The survey also identified an antimicrobial exposure of 40.8%, revealing a decrease in their use compared to the study carried out in the pre-pandemic era (44.6%). Among the organizational challenges experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic, despite the greater attention paid to infection prevention measures aimed at reducing SARS-CoV-2, many healthcare facilities had to contend with the controlled availability of personnel, physical space limitations and a large number of patients. Active surveillance in hospital wards and the consequent reporting by personnel specialized in infection control is fundamental for hospitals to recognize gaps in prevention and report any observed increases in HAIs.

Details

ISSN :
22279032
Volume :
10
Database :
OpenAIRE
Journal :
Healthcare
Accession number :
edsair.doi.dedup.....bcf0ae28428d9d0f7e2707533a78b369
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare10091597