In this paper, an analysis of published research will be carried out to observe various aspects of hospital associated infections (HAIs) in different healthcare facilities located in different parts of the world. The aim of analyzing different works of research is to gain a better understanding into how these infections occur, and figure out the circumstances in which they can be avoided. The first research paper to be analyzed was based on an observation of patients in Kazakhstan. The research paper was titled “An observational case study of hospital associated infections in a critical care unit in Astana, Kazakhstan”. The authors were a team of seven researchers, whose main aim was to evaluate the frequency of hospital associated infections and the etiological agents within a surgical ICU in Kazakhstan (Viderman et al., 2018). The authors were also interested in examining the impact that these infections had on the durations that patients would stay in the ICU, as well as on their mortality.
The research method used by the authors was observational study method. The sample size for the study was limited to 12 ICU beds and all patients admitted to the ICU between the age of 18 and 90 for a period of 21months from January 2014 to November 2015. The findings from the study indicate that the most vulnerable part to infections was the surgical site, followed by ventilator-associated pneumonia. The researchers also discovered from their study that hospital associated infections for their sample was mainly caused by gram negative pathogens (Viderman et al, 2018). Their suggestion and recommendation are that the prevention of HAI can be controlled in Kazakhstan through regular infection control audits, active surveillance, general hygiene measures and a rational antibacterial therapy.
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The second article to be analyzed was titled “ Impact of Healthcare-Associated Infections on Length of Stay: A study of 68 Hospitals in China”. The article was written by more than 15 healthcare professionals who came together to compile information. Their aim was to evaluate how HAIs has an effect on the length of stay of patients in different hospitals located in different parts of China. The research was carried out across 68 Chinese hospitals in 14 provinces. From each province, different levels of hospital were surveyed to get the general view of things as they really are across the nation. In a period of one year, 50 patients with HAIs were randomly selected from one hospital (Jia et al., 2019). The causes of infections were varied. From the study, it was verified that indeed, HAI has an effect on the length of stay of a patient in a healthcare facility, which contributes to the high healthcare costs. The high costs of healthcare are not only burdening to the financial resources of the patients, but also to the medical teams concerned, which may lead to medical disputes and increased suffering for the patients (Jia et al, 2019).
The third article to be analyzed was “ Hospital-acquired infections in the adult intensive care unit—Epidemiology, antimicrobial resistance patterns, and risk factors for acquisition and mortality”. That was also written by a team of medical researchers whose intention was to investigate the risk factors associated with acquisition of HAIs within an adult ICU, and its effect on mortality. The research used a sample of 355 patients over a period of 2 years. The sample size was chosen based on their risk factors, their patterns of antimicrobial resistance, as well as mortality predictors in patients who had a HAI (Despotovic et al., 2020). The researchers found out that the prevalence of HAIs and the resistance to HAIs were high in Serbian ICUs than they were in any other part of Europe. These findings show a heightened risk factor in mortality where Serbian ICUs are concerned (Despotovic et al, 2020).
Evidence Matrix Table
Article | Reference | Purpose Hypothesis Study Question | Variables Independent(I) Dependent(D) | Study Design | Sample Size and Selection | Data Collection Methods | Major Findings |
1 | Viderman, D., Khamzina, Y., Kaligozhin, Z., Khudaibergenova, M., Zhumadilov, A., Crape, B., & Azizan, A. (2018). An observational case study of hospital associated infections in a critical care unit in Astana, Kazakhstan. Antimicrobial resistance and infection control , 7 , 57. | To assess the rate of device-associated infections and causative HAI etiological agents | D- HAI etiological agents I- rate of device-associated infections | Qualitative | 12-bed ICU at the NRCOT, Astana, Kazakhstan. All patients admitted to the ICU from January, 2014 through November 2015, aged 18 to 90 years of age who developed an HAI. | observation | HAI was mainly caused by gram-negative pathogens |
2 | Despotovic, A., Milosevic, B., Milosevic, I., Mitrovic, N., Cirkovic, A., Jovanovic, S., & Stevanovic, G. (2020). Hospital-acquired infections in the adult intensive care unit—Epidemiology, antimicrobial resistance patterns, and risk factors for acquisition and mortality. American Journal of Infection Control . | look into HAIs in an adult ICU and identify risk factors for acquisition of HAIs and mortality. | D- HAI infections I- Risk factors for infection | Qualitative | 355 patients hospitalized over a 2-year period | observation | The prevalence of HAIs and their resistance rates were higher in Serbia than in other European countries. |
3 | Jia, H., Li, L., Li, W., Hou, T., Ma, H., Yang, Y., ... & Luo, X. (2019). Impact of healthcare-associated infections on length of stay: a study in 68 hospitals in China. BioMed research international , 2019 . | Evaluate the impact of HAIs on LOS from different hospital levels, different regions, different infection sites, different pathogens, and different MDROs systematically in China. | D-HAIs I- LOS | Qualitative | 68 hospitals in 14 primary provinces covering 50 patients in each hospital | observation | HAI can significantly increase the LOS. |
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References
Despotovic, A., M., B. & S G. (2020). Hospital-acquired infections in the adult intensive care unit—Epidemiology, antimicrobial resistance patterns, and risk factors for acquisition and mortality. American Journal of Infection Control.
Jia, H., Li, L., Li, W., Hou, T., Ma, H., Yang, Y., ... & Luo, X. (2019). Impact of healthcare-associated infections on length of stay: a study in 68 hospitals in China. BioMed research international, 2019.
Viderman, D., Khamzina, Y., M., Zhumadilov, A., Crape, B., & Azizan, A. (2018). An observational case study of hospital associated infections in a critical care unit in Astana, Kazakhstan. Antimicrobial resistance and infection control, 7, 57.
