The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has published the 2018 National and State Healthcare-Associated Infection (HAI) Progress Report. This report shows that the U.S. has made significant reductions in several types of HAIs and highlights areas where more improvements are needed. The national progress in reducing HAIs shows that prevention is possible.

The 2018 HAI Progress Report provides data from the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) on central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs), catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs), ventilator-associated events (VAEs), surgical site infections (SSIs), methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bloodstream events, and Clostridioides difficile (C. difficile) events. The report includes data across four healthcare settings: acute care hospitals, critical access hospitals, inpatient rehabilitation facilities, and long-term acute care hospitals.

Nationally, among acute care hospitals between 2017 and 2018, highlights in the report include:
• About 9% decrease in CLABSIs
• About 8% decrease in CAUTIs
• No significant changes in VAEs
• No significant changes in SSIs related to the 10 procedures tracked in the report
• No significant changes in hospital onset MRSA bacteremia
• About 12% decrease in hospital onset C. difficile infections

Source: CDC