Underestimating the impact of ventilator-associated pneumonia by use of surveillance data.
We calculated rates of ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) by using surveillance data, clinical data, and coding data. Compared with the VAP rates calculated on the basis of surveillance data, the VAP rates calculated on the basis of coding data were significantly overestimated in 4 of 5 intensive care units. Efforts to improve coding and clinical documentation will address much but not all of this discrepancy between surveillance and administrative data.
Drees
Marci
M
Christiana Care Health System, Wilmington, Delaware, USA. mdrees@christianacare.org
Hausman
Sherry
S
Rogers
Andrea
A
Freeman
Leslie
L
Frosch
Karen
K
Wroten
Kathy
K
D019985:Benchmarking; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D003691:Delaware; D004282:Documentation; D006801:Humans; D007362:Intensive Care Units; D019982:Organizational Case Studies; D053717:Pneumonia, Ventilator-Associated / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000517:prevention & control*; D018571:Sentinel Surveillance; D013223:Statistics as Topic