After piloting new Clostridioides difficile guidelines for nine months, Memorial Healthcare System reduced unnecessary treatments by 20.1%, according to a study published June 27 in the American Journal of Infection Control.
The Hollywood, Fla.-based system restricted the ordering of C. diff tests for some patients, including those who received laxatives within 48 hours, people treated for C. diff in the last 14 to 24 days, and those who tested positive in the previous 14 days.
Patients who received a negative test result were also ineligible for a new test, according to a news release from the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology.
There were no restrictions for people admitted within the last 72 hours who recently had at least three loose or unformed stools or patients whose hospital stays were four days or longer.
After clinicians implemented the new guidelines, the percentage of unnecessary C. diff tests fell from 31.1% (among 106 patients) to 11% (224 patients).