Pharmacy OneSource Blog

The problem of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) is a problem of numbers on a massive scale. With the growing number of patients admitted into hospitals, infections are transmitted throughout these environments in ways that cannot be addressed without the use of technological solutions.

While automated surveillance technologies have been proven for decades to be more effective than traditional manual methods in preventing HAIs, the majority of infection preventionists are still using manual surveillance. Manual surveillance methods can fail to adequately address HAIs, and with such infections becoming more widespread and the populations they impact growing larger, this trend will only continue. For the future, automated surveillance and algorithmic detection is crucial.

In electronic surveillance systems, the use of algorithms helps providers sort through data to identify patients at risk for an HAI, thus improving prevention efforts. As the technology grows more central to clinical surveillance, it is becoming critical for providers to understand exactly how it operates.

Our webinar on Wednesday, April 13 with Joan Hebden, RN, MS, CIC will review the role of this technology now and in the future of healthcare nationwide.

Hebden will review the Society for Healthcare Epidemiologists of America (SHEA)’s essential white paper on data requirements for electronic surveillance and will discuss issues regarding surveillance, including:

• What are the data requirements necessary for a top-tier electronic surveillance solution?
• What is the difference between a semi-automated and fully-automated electronic surveillance system?
• What have the results been of the implementation of automated surveillance systems, and what can providers learn from their successes?  

Federal regulation is already changing how healthcare providers are expected to approach the problem of HAIs. Whereas once HAI reporting was restricted to the ICU, regulatory bodies are now demanding their identification and observation outside of the ICU environment.

Increasing regulation acknowledges that the threat of HAIs is growing, and that it is necessary for healthcare providers to address it. Preventing HAIs and meeting the regulatory burden while doing so will continue to be a top priority as the healthcare landscape continues to evolve.

Register for the webinar here.