title: Infection preventionists and laboratorians: Case studies on successful collaboration.
abstract: Efforts to reduce the incidence of hospital-acquired infection (HAI) remain a significant focus for health care facilities, particularly in this era of drug-resistant organisms. With as many as 1 in every 25 hospitalized patients acquiring an infection, the need to minimize the risk of HAIs is widely recognized as critical. Advances in the fields of biomedical technology, microbiology, pharmacology, and infection control and prevention, among others, have played a tremendous role in these efforts. However, evidence suggests that a key element in this battle against HAIs is missing: collaboration and communication between these groups in health care facilities-particularly in microbiology and infection prevention. The need for collaboration between infection preventionists (IPs) and laboratorians has been addressed in the literature; however, a survey conducted by the APIC and the American Society for Microbiology demonstrated that both IPs and laboratorians feel they lack the tools to engage in this collaboration. This article addresses strategies for a working partnership between IPs and laboratorians and reports 3 case studies on successful collaborations at major medical centers.
authors.affiliation: Corporate Director of Infection Prevention, Universal Health Services, King of Prussia, PA.
authors.forename: Maureen
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Spencer
authors.affiliation: Director of Laboratory Services and Clinical Trials, John T. Mather Hospital, Port Jefferson, NY.
authors.forename: Denise
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Uettwiller-Geiger
authors.affiliation: Director of Infection Prevention, West Hills Hospital and Medical Center, West Hills, CA.
authors.forename: Jennifer
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sanguinet
authors.affiliation: Freelance Medical Writer, Vero Beach, FL. Electronic address: HBoehm705@aol.com.
authors.forename: Helen Boehm
authors.initials: HB
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.affiliation: Founder and CEO, DDG Associates, Alexandria, VA.
authors.forename: Denise
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Graham
mesh_terms: D003428:Cross Infection / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006282:Health Personnel; D006801:Humans; D017053:Infection Control / Q000379:methods*; D033183:Interdisciplinary Communication; D000070516:Intersectoral Collaboration
keywords: Infection prevention; clinical laboratory; hospital-acquired infection; infection control; polymerase chain reaction