Hospitals that screen patients in the intensive care unit for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) help save the facility money, according to a study published in the February issue of the American Journal of Infection Control, the official publication of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC).
The study, which used a statistical simulation model, was conducted by a team of researchers at the Minneapolis Veterans Affairs Medical Center. The objective of the study was to determine the costs per hospital admission of screening ICU patients for MRSA and isolating patients who tested positive, according to an APIC news release.
The results revealed that under the most conservative assumptions, the screening would be cost-neutral if early detection of MRSA would lead to a reduced rate of infection and transmission within the hospital. Under optimal assumptions, screening could result in savings of almost $500 per hospital admission.
APIC is calling for a more targeted, evidence-based approach to reduce hospital-acquired MRSA infection that allows hospitals to tailor screening efforts based on their unique situation. APIC recently published an updated Guide to the Elimination of MRSA Transmission in Hospital Settings, 2nd Edition, which includes a section on active surveillance testing.
Read the APIC news release about MRSA (pdf).
Read more about and from APIC:
- APIC Co-Launches Website to Help Eliminate CLABSIs
- Environmental Cleaning and Disinfection: What Infection Preventionists Need to Know
- Review: Infection Prevention Approach to New CMS Requirements for Ambulatory Surgery Centers
