Technology is playing an important role in how infection prevention practices are being implemented, monitored and measured. Electronics, informatics and automation have greatly changed the traditional ways of upholding infection control principles -- it is my hope that these changes are for the better. Having attended the Decennial meeting in March and more recently the APIC annual meeting this month, I noticed a bevy of companies promoting cutting-edge technology designed to address some of the more vexing issues in healthcare, especially disinfection and sterilization of air and surfaces in the patient-care environment. It's a topic we touched upon in the July issue of ICT and will address again later this year. I am intrigued by these technologies and firmly believe they have a place inthe infection prevention arsenal.

I was therefore very glad to read a letter to the editor of Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology (July 2010, Vol. 31, No. 7) from two experts I admire, John Leander Po, MD, and Philip Carling, MD, who point to the suboptimal level of surface cleaning in hospitals and then address the seemingly ubiquitous C. difficile problem. They ask for additional investigation of patient-room decontamination processes and techniologies, noting, "Although innovative technologies may play a role in the environmental hygiene armamentarium, their logistical complexity as well as the equipment and personnel costs of these interventions make it imperative that independent or consortium-sponsored, objectively controlled studies be undertaken to clarify the true role of these technologies. Such studies would be particularly important, givent he evidence that improving routine hygienic practice can significantly decrease environmental contamination of 'patient zone' surfaces and reduce the transfer of healthcare-associated pathogens to susceptible patients."

I'm glad that Drs. Po and Carling are asking for additional investigation through studies because there simply cannot be enough data from which infection preventionists and hospital administrators can draw when engaging in product evaluation and making purchasing choices. Boyce and colleagues (Infect Control Hosp Epidem. 2008:29:723-729) also called for further exploration, and I think that's smart -- the best technologies will endure scrutiny and the rest will fall away. I encourage scientists and manufacturers to continue to talk about new and evolving ways to fight healthcare-acquired infections, letting technology meet evidence-based practices.