CDC:Get ready for U.S. Antibiotic Awareness Week!

 

November 18 Kicks Off U.S. Antibiotic Awareness Week Prevention Puts a “Pause” on Antimicrobial Resistance; Play Your Part

Every year, CDC honors U.S. Antibiotic Awareness Week (USAAW) to raise awareness and share information on the importance of improving antibiotic and antifungal drug use. Any time antibiotics or antifungal drugs are used—in people, animals, or plants—they can cause side effects and contribute to antimicrobial resistance (AR). Everyone has a role in combating AR, including you! Read on for ways to participate in USAAW and check out CDC’s USAAW Partner Toolkit to help spread the word.

5 ways to join USAAW activities from November 18–24 1. Use and share CDC’s U.S. Antibiotic Awareness Week 2022 Partner Toolkit for key messages and social media graphics. And check out CDC’s Be Antibiotics Aware partner toolkit for human health. 2. Jump into Twitter chats using #AntimicrobialResistance and #USAAW22 November 15, 7 p.m. EST: Society of Infectious Diseases Pharmacists, American Nurses Association, and CDC are co-hosting a live Twitter chat on a multidisciplinary approach to antimicrobial resistance in health care. Join the conversation @SIDPharm, @ANANursingworld, @CDC_AR, and @CDC_Firstline using #AntimicrobialResistance and #USAAW22 November 18, all day: 24-hour Global Twitter Conversation using #WAAW and #AntimicrobialResistance  3. Go Light Blue for AR to show your support for improving the use of antibiotics and antifungal drugs  Wear light blue Light up buildings and landmarks in light blue for the week Bring light blue to your online presence Share pictures on your social media, tagging #AntimicrobialResistance or #USAAW22 4. Mark your calendars for an upcoming webinar November 16, 3-4 p.m. EST: CDC and Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) webinar on antibiotic decision-making in critical access hospitals 5. Check out the latest CDC resources on antibiotic use and AR across One Health  Know when antibiotics can help for common infections (Spanish) Check out the 2022 update on U.S. antibiotic use in human health Learn how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted AR Get the latest on drug-resistant TB: CDC’s Provisional Guidance for the Use of Pretomanid as part of a Regimen [Bedaquiline, Pretomanid, and Linezolid (BPaL)] to Treat Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis Disease

Prevention Puts a Pause on Antimicrobial Resistance; Play Your Part You can help combat AR every day. Take steps to protect yourself and your family by reducing your risk of infection: Keep your hands clean and practice good hygiene Stay up to date on recommended vaccines Improve how you use antibiotics and antifungals for people, animals, plants Practice safer sex Prepare food safely

	Join U.S. Antibiotic Awareness Week Nov. 18-24 to spread the word about the importance of improving #antibiotic & #antifungal drug use and the threat of #AntimicrobialResistance. Download CDC’s Partner Toolkit for more ways to join: https://bit.ly/3UAftGY #USAAW22

2021 National and State Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAI) Progress Report Shows Increases in Some HAIs

CDC has released the 2021 National and State Healthcare-Associated Infections Progress Report, which shows significant increases in the standardized infection ratio (SIR) between 2020 and 2021 in some HAIs for some facility types.  Changes in SIRs among acute care hospitals from 2020 to 2021 include:  14% increase in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteremia 12% increase in ventilator-associated events (VAE) 11% increase in surgical site infections (SSIs) following abdominal hysterectomy 7% increase in central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI) 5% increase in catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI) 3% decrease in C. difficile infection  In 2021, many hospitals continued to face extraordinary circumstances due to the COVID-19 pandemic that may have reduced the implementation of standard infection prevention and control (IPC) practices. In acute care hospitals, the increases seen in some HAIs in 2021 contrast with the success in reducing these infections prior to the pandemic. Despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, acute care hospitals performed significantly better than the 2015 national baseline in preventing CLABSI, CAUTI, SSIs following colon surgeries, and C. difficile infections.  The 2021 HAI Progress Report highlights the need for healthcare providers to continue to:  Reinforce IPC practices in their facilities,  Regularly review HAI surveillance data to identify areas that need to be improved, and  Address any gaps in prevention practices. CDC remains committed to protecting patients and promoting safety, quality, and value in healthcare delivery.  The report includes data submitted to CDC’s National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) across four healthcare settings: acute care hospitals, critical access hospitals, inpatient rehabilitation facilities, and long-term acute care hospitals. There are three comparison measures in the report:  Comparing 2021 state SIR to 2015 national baseline SIR of 1 Comparing 2021 state SIR to 2021 national SIR (excludes the state’s data from national data for independent comparison) Comparing 2021 SIR to 2020 SIR (the state or nation is compared to itself between 2020 and 2021 national comparisons between 2020 and 2021) The SIR is a summary statistic that can be used to track HAI prevention progress over time; lower SIRs are better. In addition to the SIRs, the report includes the standardized utilization ratios (SURs), which measure device use by comparing the number of observed device days to the number of predicted device days. Read the full 2021 HAI Progress Report, including the executive summary, data tables, technical appendix, and frequently asked questions. Data for the HAI Progress Report are also available in CDC’s Antibiotic Resistance & Patient Safety Portal (AR&PSP), an interactive web-based application that shows data collected through CDC’s NHSN and other sources.

	New 2021 National and State HAI Progress Report shows increases in some healthcare-associated infections between 2020 and 2021. Explore current data in @CDCgov’s Antibiotic Resistance & Patient Safety Portal: https://arpsp.cdc.gov/profile/infections?tab=nhsn #infectioncontrol