What have we learned from the surveys of the AEC, AECP and the Observatory of Infection in Surgery? Compliance with postoperative infection prevention measures and comparison with the AEC recommendations.

Before planning improvement strategies, it is crucial to know the degree of implementation of preventative measures for postoperative infection. The aggregated results of 3 surveys carried out by the Observatory of Infection in Surgery to members of 11 associations of surgeons and perioperative nurses are presented. The questions were aimed to determine the knowledge of the scientific evidence, personal beliefs and the actual use of the main measures. Of 2295 respondents, 45.1% did not receive feedback on the infection rate of their unit. Insufficient knowledge of some of the main prevention recommendations and some disturbing rates of use were observed. The preferred strategies to improve compliance with preventive guidelines and their degree of implementation were investigated. A gap between scientific evidence and clinical practice in the prevention of infection in different surgical specialties was confirmed.