Stone Patricia W, Dick Andrew, Pogorzelska Monika, Horan Teresa C, Furuya E Yoko, Larson Elaine
Columbia University School of Nursing, New York, NY.
RAND Corporation Pittsburgh, PA.
Am J Infect Control. 2009 Jun;37(5):351-357. doi: 10.1016/j.ajic.2008.11.001. Epub 2009 Feb 8.
The nature of infection prevention and control is changing; however, little is known about current staffing and structure of infection prevention and control programs.
Our objectives were to provide a snapshot of the staffing and structure of hospital-based infection prevention and control programs in the United States. A Web-based survey was sent to 441 hospitals that participate in the National Healthcare Safety Network.
The response rate was 66% (n = 289); data were examined on 821 professionals. Infection preventionist (IP) staffing was significantly negatively related to bed size, with higher staffing in smaller hospitals (P < .001). Median staffing was 1 IP per 167 beds. Forty-seven percent of IPs were certified, and 24 percent had less than 2 years of experience. Most directors or hospital epidemiologists were reported to have authority to close beds for outbreaks always or most of the time (n = 225, 78%). Only 32% (n = 92) reported using an electronic surveillance system to track infections.
This study is the first to provide a comprehensive description of current infection prevention and control staffing, organization, and support in a select group of hospitals across the nation. Further research is needed to identify effective staffing levels for various hospital types as well as examine how the IP role is changing over time.
感染预防与控制的性质正在发生变化；然而，对于当前感染预防与控制项目的人员配备和结构知之甚少。
我们的目标是对美国医院感染预防与控制项目的人员配备和结构进行简要描述。向参与国家医疗安全网络的441家医院发送了基于网络的调查问卷。
回复率为66%（n = 289）；对821名专业人员的数据进行了分析。感染预防专员（IP）的人员配备与床位规模显著负相关，小型医院的人员配备更多（P < .001）。人员配备中位数为每167张床位1名IP。47%的IP获得了认证，24%的IP经验不足2年。据报告，大多数主任或医院流行病学家在爆发疫情时总是或大部分时间有权关闭床位（n = 225，78%）。只有32%（n = 92）报告使用电子监测系统来跟踪感染情况。
本研究首次对全国一组选定医院当前的感染预防与控制人员配备、组织和支持情况进行了全面描述。需要进一步研究以确定各类医院的有效人员配备水平，并研究IP角色如何随时间变化。
