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eBulletin December 2004 Edition 12 |
In this Edition:
Reminders:
! Type 1 Data Submission:
This week Type 1 Quarter 3, 2004 reports were released. The submission deadline for Quarter 4, 2004 data is
4th February 2005. Please see below for information regarding new Surgical Antibiotic
Prophylaxis Reporting!
! Type 2 Data Submission:
This week the first Type 2 reports have been released for the May/June/July to September 2004 period -
referred to as 3rd Quarter Reports. The deadline for data to be forwarded to the VICNISS Coordinating
Centre for 4th Quarter (October- December) 2004 data is 31st January 2005.
The corresponding report is then due to be posted mid March 2005.
! Type 2 Surveillance Plans:
The 2005 Surveillance plans are now due. An updated blank form may be obtained from the
VICNISS website in the VICNISS manual (Draft Version 8).
Table 4.1 Page 4-2 should be referred to when completing the plan. There are three new required or optional
surveillance modules - 'Health Care Workers and Hepatitis B Vaccination', 'Intravenous Device Use' and
'Occupational Exposures'. Please contact
Noleen Bennett
or Ann Bull
if individual assistance is required.
Key Dates 2004-05: For more information on deadlines and dates, please click here
(link no longer available) for Key Dates 2004-05.
Update on the VICNISS Coordinating Centre
As advised in the August 2004 eBulletin, DHS will be advertising a new tender to run the Coordinating Centre. As you may be aware, our existing
contract with DHS is due to cease in February 2005, however to ensure that VICNISS continues to operate during the tender process, DHS have extended
the existing contract to August 2005. Therefore we will continue to support participating hospitals and operate as usual, whilst continuing to plan
for the future as VICNISS continues to evolve. We extend our gratitude to you all for your understanding and patience during this period.
ACINETOBACTER is the Word!
Congratulations to Jenny Bradford, Infection Control at the new Casey Hospital who has won the $100 book voucher competition held during Infection
Control Awareness Week. We received 10 correct entries and Jenny's name was drawn from a hat by Clinton Dunkley.
Many thanks to all those who entered the competition. We hope you all had a good look around the website whilst trying to find the word.
Type 1 Surgical Antibiotic Prophylaxis Reporting in Time for Christmas!!
For those of you that have been diligently providing antibiotic prophylaxis data, reporting is now being undertaken, and thank you for your patience.
This has been a major effort, particularly from those hospitals where this information can be difficult to collect. It can also be difficult to interpret,
as can the antibiotic guidelines as we have all discovered!
In summary, reporting will be based on the following three criteria:
- Were the antibiotics administered concordant with published guidelines;
- Were the antibiotics given at the recommended times; and
- Did the duration of antibiotic administration exceed the recommended time.
Reporting on these data has been complex, and has required assistance from a wide variety of professionals including a panel of ID physicians and an
expert computer programmer.
An explanation of the way in which the reports were prepared will accompany the reports and if you have any questions please don’t hesitate to
call us.
Type 1 Surveillance Education Workshops
Reports workshops were held on 21st July 2004 and 1st December 2004 with very positive feedback. Content covered included "p values" and "confidence
intervals" as well as "interpretation of reports". Participant feedback indicated they felt the workshop was of great value. The first workshop on "
Reports" for 2005 is anticipated to be held in July, unless there is enough interest to hold one earlier. Details will appear here when available.
For more details on VICNISS Workshops, please click here.
Type 1 and 2 User Group
The third Type 1 User Group meeting for 2004 was held at the VICNISS Coordinating Centre on the 1st December. The meeting was dedicated to issues
surrounding Obstetrics and Gynaecological surgery including Caesarean sections. All Infection
Control Consultants at hospitals undertaking Type 1 & 2 surveillance on these procedures were invited as we have been alerted to many issues
that pose problems at various hospitals, such as collecting risk factor data for C-sections, post discharge infections, antibiotic prophylaxis to
name a few. More detailed notes will be available here to view and download shortly.
Type 2 Educational Presentations 2005
Jane Motley (the VICNISS Educational Officer) has been in contact with the Regional Coordinators to organise some Infectious Diseases/ Infection
Control Educational presentations for 2005. Some suggested topics are Influenza and Hepatitis B. Other suggestions welcomed.
For further details, please contact Noleen Bennett on 9342 3906.
Orthopaedic Costings Study
Ethics approval has been sought and granted by the DHS Human Research and Ethics Committees and by all hospital HRECs who are involved in the study
with the exception of one. Over 160 hip and knee infections reported to VICNISS by metropolitan and rural facilities during November 2002 and June 2004
are being investigated. Data has been completed for 11 of the 14 sites. Data relating to LOS, clinical interventions, procedures, mortality, ICU
stay, hospital admissions and discharges from the remaining hospitals will continue during December and January 2005.
Part 2 of the study where data is extracted from the DHS database (VAED) will assist in comparison of the infection data reported to VICNISS
and data reported to DHS is scheduled for January 2005.
Consumer Information
A fact sheet for consumers on "Hospital Acquired Infections" has been available on our website
for some time. We are pleased to announce that an "MRO" fact sheet is also now also available. The
development of these sheets involved the input of several hospital Community Advisory Committees. VICNISS is also working with the Better Health Channel.
Feedback on these fact sheets is welcome.
Infection Control Literature Reviews, November & December 2004
Our most recent literature review,
for December, compiled by Dr Deb Friedman, VICNISS ID Physician discusses current research on the following selected topics:
- Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia
- Linezolid is a Short-lived Success
- CVC Removal in Catheter-Related Bacteraemia
- Handwashing in Healthcare Workers: Accessibility of Sink Location does not Improve Compliance
The following selected topics were discussed in the November literature review:
- Control of Vancomycin-resistant Enterococci in a Hospital
- Postdischarge Surveillance: The Impact on Surgical Site Infection Incidence
- High Rate of Bacterial Contamination of Expressed Breast Milk
Xmas and New Year Period
Please note that the VICNISS Coordinating Centre will be closed for the period
between Xmas and New Years. Our last day of operation will be on Friday 24th December and we will reopen
on Tuesday 4th January. During this period, if you require any urgent assistance, call 0417 158 628 and
leave a message, and one of the team members will respond to your call.
Xmas Message!
Another year has raced by and surveillance activities are now underway in all
Victorian Public Hospitals. We'd like to take this opportunity to thank all participating sites and
their Infection Control teams for their hard work in collecting and submitting VICNISS data. We continue
to be encouraged by the positive feedback from many sites and hope that ultimately data collated and
analysed by the VICNISS Coordinating Centre assists you in providing a safer environment for your patients.
From everybody at the VICNISS Coordinating Centre, we'd like to wish you all a safe and happy Festive Season.
