Monitoring infection prevention and control

NL Health Services tracks and reports hand hygiene practices to help reduce healthcare associated infections (HAIs).

 How we report:

• Observation: Visual audits are conducted across facilities to monitor compliance with hand hygiene practices and provide feedback to nursing units.
• Information screens: Hand hygiene compliance rates are displayed on screens in nursing stations.
• Auditors: Trained hospital staff observe healthcare workers during patient interactions to ensure healthcare providers cleaned their hands at the correct times.

 

Four moments of hand hygiene: 

• Moment 1: Before patient/patient environment contact.
• Moment 2: Before aseptic procedures.
• Moment 3: After body fluid exposure risk.
• Moment 4: After patient/patient environment contact.

Hospital patients are at higher risk of developing infections due to factors like weakened immune systems, increased use of antibiotics, surgical and medical procedures that cause breaks in the skin, and/or close contact with other patients and healthcare workers. 

We track quarterly and annual data for infections such as Clostridium difficile infection (CDI), Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) and Vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus (VRE).

Table 1: Rate of health-care-associated Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) per 10,000 patient/resident days by fiscal quarter

Note: Most recent rate of health-care-associated CDI in acute care (2020) was 3.80 per 10,000 patient days (Canadian Nosocomial Infection Surveillance Program, 2022).

Table 2: Rate of health-care-associated Clostridium difficile infection (CDI) per 10,000 patient/resident days by fiscal year

Note: Most recent rate of health-care-associated CDI in acute care (2020) was 3.80 per 10,000 patient days (Canadian Nosocomial Infection Surveillance Program, 2022).

Table 3: Rate of health-care-associated Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) infection per 10,000 patient/resident days by fiscal quarter

Note: Most recent national rate of health-care-associated MRSA in acute care (2017) was 1.65 per 10,000 patient days (Canadian Nosocomial Infection Surveillance Program, 2019).

Table 4: Rate of healthcare-associated Methicillin resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) infection per 10,000 patient/resident days by fiscal year

Note Most recent national rate of healthcare-associated MRSA in acute care (2017) was 1.65 per 10,000 patient days (Canadian Nosocomial Infection Surveillance Program, 2019).

**For all tables above, rates are a measure of disease frequency in a population. In this case, rates are calculated by dividing the number of cases by the number of patient or resident days and multiplying by 10,000. For example, if there were 2 cases and 1,000 patient days, the rate would be 20 per 10, 000 patient days.