Nosocomial infections. A college of American pathologists Q-probes study in 512 North American institutions.

We report nosocomial infection surveillance methods and hospital infection rates in 512 institutions obtained from a Q-Probes study of the College of American Pathologists, Northfield, Ill. The results showed that nosocomial infection surveillance procedures were well standardized. Use of microbiology reports was the most common case-finding method (97.3%), followed by review of the patient's medical record (86.1%). The median number of full-time equivalents per 100 occupied beds utilized for infection control services was 0.64, and these full-time equivalents spent 40% of their time on surveillance activities. A computer was used in 81% of institutions to assist in conducting surveillance, although this usage was not associated with decreased surveillance time or personnel required. This study provided data on total and site-specific infection rates for a wide range of small to large hospitals. When stratified into subgroups (based on teaching status and hospital size), infections rates in this study were comparable with those of the National Nosocomial Infection Surveillance program, and showed a trend of increasing rates of nosocomial bloodstream and surgical wound infections.