Connections: March 2023 - 9

Great strides in infection prevention
A Cheshire Medical Center success story
The chart tells the story. The number
of hospital-acquired infections at Cheshire
Medical Center has dropped dramatically in
recent months. In two of those months, the
number was zero.
That significant accomplishment has a lot
to do with the work led by Erin Patnode, BSN,
RN, who has been an infection preventionist
at Cheshire for the last two years. " Our overall
goal has been to ensure that the facility we're
working in is safe and clean, " she says. " We also
want to ensure that our patients are receiving
the best evidence-based quality care that we
can possibly deliver. "
Patnode says she, in collaboration with many
leaders, look for opportunities for improvement
in infection prevention and then assess
practices, policies, education, how staff is being
trained, and whether they have the right tools to
be successful. That approach has brought some
common infections to a halt.
" In the two years I've been working here,
we've worked extremely hard to improve
outcomes around central line-associated
bloodstream infections [CLABSI], C. difficile,
and catheter-associated urinary tract infections
[CAUTI]. Actually, in November, we celebrated
a whole year without a CLABSI. That was
exciting to see. "
Hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) are a
major challenge for hospitals worldwide. In
U.S. hospitals alone, the CDC reports that HAIs
account for an estimated 1.7 million infections
each year. Beyond the impact on patients, HAIs
create a direct medical cost to hospitals of nearly
$30 billion, mostly due to longer hospital stays.
The battle against HAIs has been hard-fought
at Dartmouth Health over the years, but the
appearance of COVID-19 required new
and better defenses, and fast. " It
was a trying time, " Patnode
says. " As an infection
preventionist, you feel
responsible not only for
the patients but also for
the staff and their safety.
You also want to ensure
that you're doing all that
you can to make them feel supported, and that
they have the resources and the knowledge
they need to care for the patients. "
Whether it's COVID-19 or other infections,
Patnode says the primary prevention measure is
hand washing: " Simple as that. One of the things
that we drive into everybody as they enter our
doors, as new hires, students, you name it, is the
importance of hand washing. " The other major
measure used against HAIs is the cleaning and
disinfection of the equipment between patients.
In recent months, a system-wide task force
was formed to examine all aspects of infection
control and align as a system on evidencebased
practices. " The task force will make
recommendations that we can implement
at our individual sites, " Patnode says. " Smaller
hospitals may not have as many resources, so
it's taking all of the system's experts and putting
us together. It's really empowering. "
What does she see ahead? " Continued
growth in collaboration with all of our front-line
staff, from management to EVS and nutrition, "
Patnode says. " There are so many important
people within the facility, and we need to make
sure that they are involved, they have a voice,
and they can help
with prevention.
My vision is to
reach zero hospitalacquired
infections. "
Hear
about the
latest in COVID-19
infection prevention
strategies on
Dartmouth Health's
" The Cure "
podcast.
Erin Patnode, BSN, RN
Cheshire Medical Center
infection preventionist
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-25-the-future-of-covid-19-management/id1543557036?i=1000585651714 https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-25-the-future-of-covid-19-management/id1543557036?i=1000585651714
Connections: March 2023

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