Although significant progress has been made in preventing some infection types, there is much more work to be done. On any given day, about one in 25 hospital patients in the United States has at least one healthcare-associated infection (HAI).
The CDC’s annual National and State Healthcare-Associated Infections Progress Report (HAI Progress Report) describes national and state progress in preventing HAIs. Among national acute care hospitals, the most recent report (2014 data, published 2016) found:
- 50 percent decrease in central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI) between 2008 and 2014
- No change in overall catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI) between 2009 and 2014
- However, there was progress in non-ICU settings between 2009 and 2014, progress in all settings between 2013 and 2014, and even more progress in all settings toward the end of 2014
- 17 percent decrease in surgical site infections (SSI) related to the 10 select procedures tracked in previous reports
- 17 percent decrease in abdominal hysterectomy SSI between 2008 and 2014
- 2 percent decrease in colon surgery SSI between 2008 and 2014
- 8 percent decrease in hospital-onset Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) infections between 2011 and 2014
- 13 percent decrease in hospital-onset methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteremia (bloodstream infections) between 2011 and 2014
Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention