eBulletin April 2003 Edition 4

Past VICNISS eBulletins

Subscribe to eBulletin

In this Edition:

Phase II Commences

From May 2003 nine additional hospitals will be contributing surveillance data for an expanded list of VICNISS procedures. At the same time VICNISS will be collating the next round of data for Phase I hospitals. VICNISS staff will be contacting each facility to arrange transfer of data.

Feedback Survey

VICNISS is keen to receive feedback from all key stakeholders. A satisfaction survey will be distributed to all the Infection Control teams at Phase I hospitals. Results from the survey will assist us in planning future activities and will be repeated after the implementation of each of the Phases.

May VICNISS User Group Meeting

Next Meeting:

DATE:	21.05.2003
TIME:	1400 – 1500 ICU/HRN group 1500 – 1600 SSI group
VENUE:	St Vincent’s Hospital 11th floor conference room, Inpatient Services building Map and location details (PDF File 91kb, opens in new window)

To assist catering please confirm your attendance at the VUG with Jane Motley by 14th May. For more information on the user group meeting please access our website.

Cessation of VICNISS eICAT Software Contract

As a result of issues identified during functionality testing of VICNISS eICAT, 2 independent software testers engaged by DHS found the program to be unsuitable for introduction as the surveillance software for the VICNISS system. DHS expects to advertise the tender for a new software developer in April/May 2003. The process of developing and introducing new hospital Acquired infection surveillance software is expected to take approximately 8 months. In the meantime, hospitals in Phase II & III will proceed with standardised collection of data on paper or through the eICAT v3.3 software with modified data fields. To ensure uniform data collection fields, hospitals using eICAT v3.3 will be contacted by VICNISS to discuss minor alterations to some fields. In the interim, contingency plans have been implemented and include:

development of an in-house VICNISS aggregation database and paper forms for data collection ;
provision of service to hospitals to input data (to avoid extra workload for hospitals);
increased site visits to ensure electronic efficient transfer of data where possible; and
first line helpdesk service for hospitals using old eICAT software.

April Study Day for Phase II Hospitals

A second VICNISS study day was held on April 16th to support participants in Phase II of the VICNISS project. Participants and VICNISS staff shared valuable information and feedback from the day has been very positive. A full evaluation of the study day will soon be available from: www.vicniss.org.au/usersgroup.htm

The next VICNISS workshop for Phase III is scheduled for Friday 13th June, 2003. If you have been a participant in Phase I or II of the project and have not attended a workshop but would like to please contact Jane Motley for more information.

Caesar Surgical Site Infection Form

From Phase II onward participating hospitals will be offered the option of SSI surveillance in Caesarean Sections. The VICNISS Coordinating Centre has developed a separate form for use in Caesarean SSI data collection that can be downloaded from the VICNISS website. Initially VICNISS will use the standard risk adjustment to report rates of Caesarean Section surgical site infection. However, research in large numbers of patients undergoing Caesarean Sections has demonstrated that the traditional NNIS risk adjustment is not predictive of risk. Therefore, data fields that allow for collection of additional risk factors have been added to the form for inclusion in the contributed data set. The additional fields required for Caesarean Sections are:

blood loss during surgery
rupture of membranes
Body Mass Index (BMI)
antenatal care
timing of antibiotic prophylaxis

For further information regarding Caesarean Section surveillance please contact your VICNISS Primary Consultant.

VICNISS Procedure Groups

In Phase I we asked hospitals to perform SSI surveillance in specified surgical procedures. From Phase II hospitals will choose which areas and procedure groups and/or ICU surveillance they wish to undertake. To help us plan, from Phase II hospitals are required to submit a surveillance plan to the Coordinating Centre that details their proposed surveillance activities for the next 12 months. We understand that changing priorities at hospitals may prompt changes to the initial plan and ask that you let us know of any changes as soon as practical.

As from Phase II ICD 10 codes have been incorporated into the VICNISS manual and SSI data forms. Click here to download the surveillance plan form or to obtain further information regarding the extended list of procedure groups.

Department of Human Services, Victoria, The Place To Be