Intensive Care Units for Newborns See Sharp Drop in Bloodstream Infections

Central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs) in newborns were reduced by 58 percent in less than a year in hospital neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) participating in an AHRQ patient safety program. Frontline caregivers in 100 NICUs in nine states relied on the program’s prevention practice checklists and better communication to prevent an estimated 131 infections and up to 41 deaths and to avoid more than $2 million in health care costs, according to a new AHRQ report.

CLABSIs are healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) that cause serious illness and death in infants as well as adults. In newborns, especially premature infants, central lines can remain in place for weeks or months to provide nutrients and medications, creating opportunities for infections. Health care teams in the project states, caring for 8,400 newborns, used AHRQ’s Comprehensive Unit-based Safety Program (CUSP) to improve safety culture and consistently implement catheter insertion and maintenance guidelines. CUSP helps hospitals understand and apply the science of safety and take actions to improve teamwork and communications. A nationwide project to reduce CLABSIs in all ICUs that ended in September 2012 led to a 41 percent overall reduction, according to new details in a separate final report from that project. Select to see details from both projects in a January 24 AHRQ press release.

Eliminating CLABSI, A National Patient Safety Imperative

A Progress Report on the National On the CUSP: Stop BSI Project, Neonatal CLABSI Prevention

Since August 2011, 100 neonatal intensive care units in nine States have participated in a national, neonatal central line-associated bloodstream infection (NCLABSI) reduction project as part of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality-funded national effort to prevent central line-associated bloodstream infections in U.S. hospitals by implementing a Comprehensive Unit-based Safety Program (CUSP). CLABSI is a significant contributor to morbidity and mortality for infants in NICUs because of these patients have immature immune systems. This Progress Report on the National On the CUSP: Stop BSI Project, Neonatal CLABSI Prevention provides an overview of the project's accomplishments to date and discusses the project's next steps.
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A project of:
Health Research & Educational Trust
Neonatal CLABSI in partnership with:
Perinatal Quality Collaborative of North Carolina (PQCNC)
Missouri Center for Patient Safety (MOCPS)

Executive Summary
Introduction & Objectives
Methods
Data Collection and Analysis
Results
Participation
Central Lines
Infections
Maintenance
Team Check-Up Tool
Rates
Rate Overall
Rates By Weight
Rates By Bed Size
Impact
Conclusion
Next Steps
Disclaimer: This report was developed with data collected and analyzed under contract with the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). The information and opinions expressed herein reflect solely the position of the authors. Nothing herein should be construed to indicate AHRQ support or endorsement of its contents.

AHRQ Publication No. 13-0013-EF
Current as of October 2012

Internet Citation:

Eliminating CLABSI, A National Patient Safety Imperative: A Progress Report on the National 'On the CUSP: Stop BSI' Project, Neonatal CLABSI Prevention. AHRQ Publication No. 13-0013-EF, October 2012. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD.

http://www.ahrq.gov/qual/clabsi-neonatal/index.html