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Infections in Australian Aged-Care Facilities: Evaluating the Impact of Revised McGeer Criteria for Surveillance of Urinary Tract Infections

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  04 February 2016

Noleen J. Bennett*
Affiliation:
Victorian Healthcare Associated Infection Surveillance System (VICNISS) Coordinating Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Sandra A. Johnson
Affiliation:
Victorian Healthcare Associated Infection Surveillance System (VICNISS) Coordinating Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Michael J. Richards
Affiliation:
Victorian Healthcare Associated Infection Surveillance System (VICNISS) Coordinating Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia Department of Medicine, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Mary A. Smith
Affiliation:
Department of Health, Grampians Region, Horsham, Victoria, Australia.
Leon J. Worth
Affiliation:
Victorian Healthcare Associated Infection Surveillance System (VICNISS) Coordinating Centre, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia Department of Medicine, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
*
Address correspondence to Dr Noleen Bennett, VICNISS Coordinating Centre, Doherty Institute, 792 Elizabeth St, Melbourne 3000 VIC (Noleen.Bennett@mh.org.au).

Abstract

Our survey of 112 Australian aged-care facilities demonstrated the prevalence of healthcare-associated infections to be 2.9%. Urinary tract infections (UTIs) defined by McGeer criteria comprised 35% of all clinically defined UTIs. To estimate the infection burden in these facilities where microbiologic testing is not routine, modified surveillance criteria for UTIs are necessary.

Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2016;37:610–612

Type
Concise Communications
Copyright
© 2016 by The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America. All rights reserved 

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