MedStar Washington Hospital Center's neonatal intensive care unit in the District of Colombia marked an impressive safety milestone July 31: three years with zero central line-associated bloodstream infections.
The accomplishment is particularly exciting because the infants in the NICU "are so small and fragile it makes it easier for infection to spread," said Zacharia Cherian, MD, chairman of neonatology at the hospital. "In addition, their immune systems are still immature, so fighting off infection is much more difficult than for a healthy baby."
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Several interventions helped the hospital reduce CLABSIs, including having the NICU team fine-tune the process for inserting peripherally inserted central catheter lines, training nurses in the special dressing changes and cleaning process for neonates and special monitoring precautions.
To learn more about the NICU team's work, click here.
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