Establishment of a hospital-acquired infection surveillance system in a teaching hospital in Rwanda

Authors

  • Stephanie Lukas University of St Louis
  • Unarose Hogan new york univeristy
  • Viatory Muhirwa
  • Caroline Davis
  • John Nyiligira
  • Onyema Ogbuagu
  • Rex Wong

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.3396/ijic.v12i3.16200

Abstract

Hospital-based infection surveillance and control programs can reduce hospital acquired infection (HAI) prevalence. In resource-limited countries, HAI surveillance is challenging to implement due to inadequate or lacking laboratory infrastructure and trained personnel. A HAI surveillance system was implemented in a teaching hospital in Rwanda. A multi-disciplinary team developed a point-prevalence HAI surveillance tool based on World Health Organization (WHO’s) criteria and conducted surveillance on all inpatient units from September 2013 to March 2014. The baseline HAI rate was 15.1%. Highest HAI rates were found in intensive care unit (ICU) (50.0%), Neonatal ICU (23.1%) and Orthopedics/burn unit (37.3%). Factors significantly associated with increased risk of developing HAIs included surgery within the past month (odds ratio [OR] 2.75, 95%CI: 1.40, 5.40), use of a urinary catheter (OR 2.10, 95%CI: 1.05, 4.25), use of mechanical ventilator (OR 3.14, 95%CI: 1.01, 9.74), and use of chest drain, naso-gastric tube, external fixator (OR=3.93). Longer hospital length of stay was also significantly associated with a risk of HAI (OR 1.02). It is feasible in a low-resource setting to establish HAI surveillance and obtain an accurate HAI rate. The surveillance information can inform prioritization of infection prevention efforts.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

Downloads

Published

2016-09-02

How to Cite

Lukas, S., Hogan, U., Muhirwa, V., Davis, C., Nyiligira, J., Ogbuagu, O., & Wong, R. (2016). Establishment of a hospital-acquired infection surveillance system in a teaching hospital in Rwanda. International Journal of Infection Control, 12(3). https://doi.org/10.3396/ijic.v12i3.16200

Issue

Section

Original Articles