4th Annual VCU Infection Prevention Conference

For those of you in the Central Virginia area, on September 12th is the 4th Annual VCU Infection Prevention Conference. Conference information and registration is available here.

Guest speakers this year include Drs. Amy Mathers (University of Virginia), Priya Nori (Albert Einstein College of Medicine) and Mark Rupp (University of Nebraska Medical Center).

For the first time in this conference series, I too will be giving a lecture. My lecture is titled The Learning Hospital: From Theory to Practice in a Hospital Infection Prevention Program.

Looking forward to the event.

VCU's Dr. Michelle Doll Interview: Electronic hand hygiene monitoring systems ‘vary substantially'

All hand hygiene monitoring systems are not created equal. 

Read the recently published Dr. Michelle Doll interview, based on our recent publication,  here.

Infectious Diseases at Virginia Commonwealth University: Short Video Clip

Not unlike other university medical system promotional campaigns, I was interviewed for a short video on the VCU Division of Infectious Diseases.

The clip is mercifully short.

Buyer Beware! All Hand Hygiene Technologies are not Created Equal

It's not a bad idea to do your research prior to taking a decisive plunge, particularly when investing in hand hygiene (HH) technologies.

We have badged nearly 2000 VCU Health employees with HH sensor technology badges (bluetooth enabled). We will badge the remaining 5000 over the next 12-18 months.

We previously piloted two HH technology sensor tracking systems, with bluetooth vs. RFID technology. Our results were recently published here in Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology.

Buyer beware, current products differ in their ability to capture HH events during clinical workflow. If clinical workflow is disrupted by the HH technology system, the project will sink like a lead balloon.

Lacrónica por Martín Caparrós

Durante esta última visita a mí tierra natal, tuve el placerer de leer este libro, Lacrónica por Martín Caparrós. La dedicatoria del libro se encuentra acá.

Si busca un libro con una temática que abarca el periodismo, la cultura y el viajar, con elementos de introspección y toques literarios, este libro es altamente recomendado. No le va a decepcionar.

Bueno ya estoy de regreso en EEUU, a trabajar. 

What is the Incremental benefit of Improved Patient CHG Bathing? Interested? Read On....

Congratulations to Kelly Reagan, VCU graduate student (PhD- mathematics), for her recent publication of a mathematical model on the infection prevention impact of incremental increases in chlorhexidine patient bathing.

The paper is published in the American Journal of Infection Control.

The punchline? With a 32% reduction in HAI incidence, increasing CHG bathing compliance from 60% to 90% results in 20 averted infections and $815,301.75 cost savings per annum.

X Jornadas Infectológicas de Invierno, Córdoba, Argentina: Día 2

Day 2 of the  Sociedad de Infectología de Córdoba (Argentina) -  X Jornadas Infectológicas de Invierno.

I partook in one expert panel discussion and gave three lectures. Full day indeed. It is always an honor to share the scientific program with my esteemed argentine colleagues.

Día 2 de la Sociedad de Infectología de Córdoba (Argentina) - X Jornadas Infectológicas de Invierno.

Participé en una mesa de expertos y di tres conferencias. Día completo. Siempre es un honor compartir el programa científico con mis estimados colegas argentinos.

X Jornadas Infectológicas de Invierno, Córdoba, Argentina: Día 1

Thank you to the Sociedad de Infectología de Córdoba (Argentina) for the gracious invitation to return to the  X Jornadas Infectológicas de Invierno.

As always, it is an honor to be here and to give multiple lectures, in the Spanish language. 

I go on stage tomorrow.

Gracias a la Sociedad de Infectología de Córdoba (Argentina) por la amable invitación a regresar a las X Jornadas Infectológicas de Invierno.

Como siempre, es un honor estar aquí y dar múltiples conferencias, en español. Presento mañana.

Publicado! GUÍA PARA EL CONTROL DE INFECCIONES ASOCIADAS A LA ATENCIÓN EN SALUD

Nuestro libro ha sido publicado en la lengua española y es gratuito y accesible ha todo a través de este link. 

Gracias a mi estimado colega, Sr. Samuel Ponce de Léon,  por su colaboración inestimable en este proyecto.

OP-ED: New Threats to Controlling Healthcare Associated Infections Published in the Richmond Times Dispatch

Source: Richmond Times Dispatch

Our editorial on new threats to controlling healthcare associated infections, co-written with Dr. Richard Wenzel, is now published in the Richmond Times Dispatch.

The article is accessible here.

Our opinion is clear, short a strategy change, all healthcare associated infections are not preventable with the current state of science. 

Failure to communicate this clearly is a betrayal of the public trust.

The Drum Thing

Now here is a very cool book that I just plopped down in my hospital administrative office, something quite unlike the other publications (typically medical) which clutter my work space.

The Drum Thing, by Deirdre O'Callahan, provides a candid look into the lives of professional drummers through both rich text and beautiful photographs.

This is no ordinary coffee table book to me, I actually read it!

Differences in Culture Between Medical Teams: It Matters!

Organizational culture is a system of shared assumptions, values and beliefs, which governs how people behave in organizations.  To make matters slightly more complicated, culture can vary within teams of a given organization.  This is precisely what exists in medicine between physicians and surgeons.

This study, published in Clinical Infectious Diseases, is the first of its kind to explore the difference in culture and team dynamics between physicians and surgeons with respect to antibiotic decision making.

Physicians function under a more  interdisciplinary approach, with shared decision making which includes pharmacists and infectious diseases specialists when it comes to infectious diseases concerns.  In surgery, senior surgeons are less actively engaged in antibiotic decision making. These non-operative decisions are relegated to the most junior member of the team, typically the surgical intern managing ward cases. Communication in a more vertical team structure, such as in a surgical team, is less commonly face-to-face and more commonly via messaging, with the goal of the managing intern being not to 'miss something' and to avoid blame.

How is this relevant for antimicrobial stewardship programs (ASP)? 

Forget changing culture, rather, change the message.  In other words, tailor the feedback to the specific teams.  ASPs could make the antibiotic prescribing message more convincing to surgeons by focusing on surgical outcomes and length of stay rather than antibiotic consumption rates. 

ASP interventions should strive for maximal sender-receiver impact. Service specific, bespoke ASP interventions may be the way to go.