Surveillance & Epidemiology

Electronic surveillance and informatics are used by infection preventionists to assist in the detection of outbreaks of infectious diseases caused by pathogenic organisms in the healthcare setting. Data mining complements the numbers crunching performed by hospital epidemiologists to track transmission of multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs) and facilitates public reporting of infection rates

Resistant Pathogens and Antibiotic Resistance are Considerations for HCAP Patients

Healthcare-associated pneumonia (HCAP) has more similarities to nosocomial pneumonia than to community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). However, there have only been a few epidemiological studies of HCAP in South Korea. Ji Ye Jung, of the Division of Pulmonology and Critical Care ...More
March 28, 2011
Posted in News
CRKP is Rampant in LA County Patient Population, Researchers Indicate

Researchers with the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health have found high rates of the multi-drug resistant pathogen, carbapenem-resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae (CRKP) among the patient population in long-term acute care hospitals compared to general acute care ...More
March 24, 2011
Posted in News
Experts Develop Tool to Predict Course of Haiti's Cholera Outbreak

A new study published online in Annals of Internal Medicine outlines the path of the cholera outbreak in Haiti and identifies immediate strategies for controlling the epidemic. Control strategies are needed, as Haiti is in the midst of a cholera epidemic that has killed ...More
March 17, 2011
Posted in News
Active Surveillance of Healthcare-Seeking Behavior Can Determine Epidemic Size, Severity

During the 2009 H1N1 influenza epidemic, the total number of symptomatic cases was estimated by combining influenza-like illness (ILI) consultations, virological surveillance and assumptions about healthcare-seeking behavior. Ellen Brooks-Pollock of the Centre for ...More
March 16, 2011
Posted in News
SHEA to Hold Annual Infection Control and Epidemiology Course in July

The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA) announces that its 15th annual Fellows Course in Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology will be held July 6-8, 2011 at John Hopkins University in Baltimore. The faculty includes course directors from: John ...More
March 14, 2011
Posted in News
$10 Million Awarded to Fight HAIs

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is awarding $10 million for new research to five academic medical centers as part of its Prevention Epicenter grant program, which supports efforts to develop and test innovative approaches to reducing infections in ...More
March 14, 2011
Posted in News
Tracking MDROs, Acinetobacter in U.S. Military Personnel

William G Meyer, of the Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center in Silver Spring, Md., and colleagues, report in BMC Public Health on the international infectious disease surveillance that has been conducted by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) that has been consolidated ...More
March 7, 2011
Posted in News
Program Provides Predictive Surveillance Models for Infectious Disease Outbreak Scenarios

Clara J. Witt, of the Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center in Silver Spring, Md., and colleagues, report in BMC Public Health that the Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center, Division of Global Emerging Infections Surveillance and Response System Operations (AFHSC-GEIS) ...More
March 7, 2011
Posted in News
Pharmacy OneSource Releases New Workflow Functionality for Sentri7

Wolters Kluwer Health, a leading global provider of information for healthcare professionals and students, announces that several new improvements have been added to Sentri7, a web-based, enterprise-wide electronic surveillance application that helps hospital staff identify ...More
March 7, 2011
Posted in News
Researchers Explore Effects of Vaccination and Population Structure on Flu Epidemic Spread

Human influenza is characterized by seasonal epidemics, caused by rapid viral adaptation to population immunity. Vaccination against influenza must be updated annually, following surveillance of newly appearing viral strains. During an influenza season, several strains may ...More
February 28, 2011
Posted in News