An infection preventionist's view of the compendium of strategies to prevent healthcare-associated infections: structure, process, and outcome.

Affiliation: 1. Westchester Medical Center Infection Prevention and Control and New York Medical College Department of Medicine, Valhalla, New York. Received April 14, 2014; accepted April 16, 2014; electronically published July 16, 2014. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2014;35(8):961-963 2014 by The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America. All rights reserved. 0899-823X/2014/3508-0003$15.00. DOI: 10.1086/677146 The set of articles included in the 2008 “A Compendium of Strategies to Prevent Healthcare-Associated Infections in Acute Care Hospitals” was groundbreaking because the articles distilled the latest information about 6 of the most pressing healthcare-associated infection (HAI) prevention problems into a compelling framework, with guidance for immediate interventions. Further, they were all included as a supplement to the regular monthly issue of Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology that could be kept neatly in healthcare professionals’ offices for reference. Importantly, colleagues from all disciplines could access these articles online free of charge, along with patient educational material available in English, Spanish, and several additional languages. One central topic missing from the 2008 Compendium was hand hygiene, a cornerstone of infection prevention. The World Health Organization (WHO) Clean Care Is Safer Care initiative was then the focus for hand hygiene monitoring and improvement, and it was unclear at that point whether another guidance document on the topic would have provided additional useful information. The 2014 Compendium updates will continue to be useful to front-line infection preventionists (IPs), healthcare epidemiologists, and others involved in the prevention of HAIs. This time around, the 6 original Compendium topics (strategies for preventing methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus [MRSA], Clostridium difficile infection [CDI], surgical site infection [SSI], ventilator-associated pneumonia [VAP], catheter-associated urinary tract infection [CAUTI], and central line–associated bloodstream infection [CLABSI]) have been joined by a new hand hygiene guidance document. The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA), the Infectious Diseases Society of America (IDSA), and their partners recognized that, given the substantial number of publications since 2008 on this topic, incorporating up-todate evidence into a hand hygiene guidance document could be useful for healthcare providers. It was particularly rewarding for me to participate as a Compendium hand hygiene section co-lead and representative of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC). APIC is one of the major Compendium partnering organizations, and the participation and leadership of APIC representatives in the Compendium advisory group and writing groups enabled infection preventionists to provide our perspectives and input throughout the Compendium writing process.