Excerpt from: Infection Control Today (click for full article)
As the superbugs known as carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) have continued to spread over the last decade with cases in at least 42 states, the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA) urges healthcare professionals, facilities, patients and stakeholders to work together in an effort to prevent the bacteria from becoming a widespread epidemic.
“We can’t afford to wait until a large-scale outbreak occurs to fight these dangerous bacteria,” says Dr. Sara Cosgrove, who serves as a board member of SHEA. “To effectively combat bugs like CRE, we need to confront the problem at hand that has allowed them to thrive – the overuse of antibiotics in healthcare. We know that one-third of antibiotics prescribed to patients in hospitals are unnecessary. Excessive antibiotic use combined with failure of healthcare workers to wash hands before and after caring for patients allows these bugs to develop and spread and negatively impacts patients, hospitals, and our entire healthcare system.”
CDC’s Vital Signs report found that since some CRE is resistant to most available antibiotics, this makes the bacteria difficult to treat and can result in death in 50 percent of patients who become infected. Those most at risk include patients with complex medical issues or receive long-term care.
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