Central line-associated bloodstream infections were reduced by 38 percent across 18 ICUs in seven Abu Dhabi hospitals, thanks to a bundled intervention developed by researchers from the Johns Hopkins Armstrong Institute for Patient Safety and Quality in Baltimore.
The bundled intervention emphasizes evidence-based infection prevention practices, safety culture and teamwork, and scheduled measurement of infection rates.
In addition to reducing CLABSIs by 38 percent, the intervention increased the number of units with a quarterly CLABSI rate of less than one infection per 1,000 catheter days by almost 40 percent in the Abu Dhabi ICUs in which the intervention was adopted.
All total, the study included 10 adult, five neonatal and three pediatric ICUs —accounting for 77 percent of the adult, 74 percent of the neonatal and 100 percent of the pediatric ICU beds in the city.
"Our results suggest that ICUs in disparate settings around the world could use this program and achieve similar results, significantly reducing the global morbidity, mortality and excess costs associated with CLABSIs," said lead study author Asad Latif, MD. "In addition, this collaborative could serve as a model for future efforts to reduce other types of preventable medical harms in the Middle East and around the world."
The study was the result of a collaborative effort by the Armstrong Institute, Johns Hopkins Medicine International in Baltimore and the Abu Dhabi Health Services Company, which operates the government health care system in the city.
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