Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Medicine and Health Sciences Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

PDF

Virginia Commonwealth University

VCU Health Publications

2001

Articles 1 - 1 of 1

Full-Text Articles in Medicine and Health Sciences

Control Of Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococcus In Health Care Facilities In A Region, Belinda E. Ostrowsky , M.D., M.P.H., William E. Trick, Annette H. Sohn, Stephen B. Quirk, Stacey Holt , B.S., Loretta A. Carson , M.S., Bertha C. Hill, Mathew J. Arduino, Mathew J. Kuehnert, William R. Jarvis Jan 2001

Control Of Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococcus In Health Care Facilities In A Region, Belinda E. Ostrowsky , M.D., M.P.H., William E. Trick, Annette H. Sohn, Stephen B. Quirk, Stacey Holt , B.S., Loretta A. Carson , M.S., Bertha C. Hill, Mathew J. Arduino, Mathew J. Kuehnert, William R. Jarvis

VCU Health Publications

Background

In late 1996, vancomycin-resistant enterococci were first detected in the Siouxland region of Iowa, Nebraska, and South Dakota. A task force was created, and in 1997 the assistance of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was sought in assessing the prevalence of vancomycin-resistant enterococci in the region’s facilities and implementing recommendations for screening, infection control, and education at all 32 health care facilities in the region.

Methods

The infection-control intervention was evaluated in October 1998 and October 1999. We performed point-prevalence surveys, conducted a case– control study of gastrointestinal colonization with vancomycin-resistant enterococci, and compared infection-control practices and …