Benefits of Microbial Burden Management

Presenter:

• Michael G. Schmidt, B.S., M.A., Ph.D., Professor and Vice Chair, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Medical University of South Carolina

Description of Session:

In the United States, the implementation of Medicare’s Never Events policy and the passage of the Affordable Care Act have heightened the importance of practices that increase patient safety. Bacteria resident within the built environment can be quickly transferred to patients and healthcare workers resulting in colonization or the subsequent development of nosocomial infections. With increasing frequency, the use of bundled interventions has been found to be effective for the control of Central Line-Associated Bloodstream Infections (CLABSIs) and Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia (VAP) in hospitals. However, lower CLABSIs infection rates were only seen when compliance with the bundle was high. Evidence continues to mount demonstrating the effectiveness of new technologies that can control the concentration the bacteria responsible for these infections within the built environment. Recently, we have shown that the continuous risk mitigation of the environmental burden through the limited use of antimicrobial copper surfaces resulted in a concomitant mitigation of the HAI rates for patients treated in rooms with a limited number of strategically placed antimicrobial copper touch surfaces. Building upon the observation that copper and its alloys can mitigate the HAI rate through a reduction in microbial burden the complexities of appropriately applying antimicrobial copper touch surfaces within the healthcare environment will facilitate a discussion of how controlling the concentration of bacteria within the built environment can augment current efforts with bundled interventions to enhance patient safety. The resulting insights provided should facilitate an understanding of the need to use a comprehensive approach taking full advantage of emerging infection control solutions to fight HAIs in a pragmatic and aesthetically satisfying way.

A certificate of participation will be granted to each participant based on 1.0 contact hours of instruction toward credit.

This program is co-sponsored by ASCLS-WI which is approved as a provider of continuing education programs in the clinical laboratory sciences by the ASCLS P.A.C.E. program.

As part of the new P.A.C.E. continuing education process, please go to the ASCLS CE Organizer web site to print your P.A.C.E. certificates. You will be asked for a code number to print the certificate. We will provide you this number during the webinar.

Please note that the deadline for receiving P.A.C.E. education credit for this webinar is November 9, 2017.

Materials:

• Evaluation Form
• Benefits of Microbial Burden Management – Presentation
• Benefits of Microbial Burden Management – Handouts