Epidemiology and risk factors for nosocomial pneumonia. Emphasis on prevention.

UNLABELLED: VAP is a complex nosocomial infection, the disease expression and resulting patient outcome of which is dependent on host factors, the causative organism, the timing and adequacy of treatment, and the presence of intrinsic or inducible antibiotic resistance. Significant improvements have been achieved in our ability to reduce the occurrence of VAP in the hospital setting. Clinicians caring for mechanically ventilated patients should strive to develop focused programs for the prevention of VAP, other nosocomial infections, and the occurrence of antibiotic-resistant infections at their institutions. The benefits of such programs are well demonstrated. The components of a PDSA (Plan-Do-STUDY-Act) model that can be simply employed to develop a VAP prevention program are as follows: Stages Plan: 1. Identify potentially modifiable risk factors for VAP at the institutional level. 2. Develop a strategy to modify or prevent the occurrence of these risk factors. [figure: see text] Do: 1. Carry out the planned intervention strategy. 2. Identify problems in the implementation of the designed intervention. 3. Update the intervention with solutions for the identified problems. 4. Collect basic data (e.g., VAP rates, severity of illness). STUDY: 1. Analyze data. 2. Summarize the results. Act: 1. Determine the overall success or failure of the intervention. 2. Identify potential modifications to improve the intervention strategy. 3. Prepare for next PDSA cycle. Inherent in the development and application of such programs is the concept that they are continuous processes striving to improve clinical performance over time (Fig. 3). At any given institution, the most likely approach to the prevention of NP and VAP will be a multifaceted one, employing interventions aimed at reducing the occurrence of aerodigestive tract colonization with pathogenic bacteria and aspiration. To be successful, such quality improvement programs must be embraced at the institutional level. Only in this way can hospitals hope to successfully reduce their rates of VAP and sustain or improve upon those efforts over time.