Reminder: CRE/C.diff HAI Control COCA Call Tomorrow

 

# 10, 431

 

Although I mentioned it last week, I wanted to remind my readers of tomorrow's  COCA (Clinician Outreach and Communication Activity) call that focuses on controlling two of the biggest HAI (hospital acquired infection) risks facing healthcare today; CRE and C. difficile..

 

Although primarily of interest to clinicians, the CDC holds frequent COCA  calls which are designed to ensure that practitioners have up-to-date information for their practices.

 

Tomorrow’s COCA call is  a follow up to this month’s Vital Signs report (A Coordinated Approach To Curb The Spread Of Antibiotic Resistance), which featured mathematical modeling that projected increases in drug-resistant infections and Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) without `immediate, nationwide improvements in infection control and antibiotic prescribing’.

 

The details of the event come from the CDC’s COCA website:

 

CRE and C. difficile : Is Your Healthcare Facility Implementing the Necessary Approach to Stop the Spread?

= No Continuing Education

Date:Thursday, August 20, 2015

Time:2:00 - 3:00 pm (Eastern Time)

Join by Phone:

• 888-469-1370 (U.S. Callers)
• 517-308-9046 (International Callers)

Passcode:3791890

Join by Webinar:

https://www.mymeetings.com/nc/join.php?i=PW5080898&p=3791890&t=c

Moderator:

Arjun Srinivasan, MD
Associate Director for Healthcare-Associated Infection Prevention Programs
Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Presenter(s):

Robert A. Weinstein, MD
Professor of Medicine
Chairman, Division of Infectious Diseases, Stroger Hospital of Cook County
Chief Operating Officer, Ruth M. Rothstein CORE Center
Co-Director, Rush Translational Sciences Consortium

Sara Cosgrove, M.D., M.S., FSHEA, FIDSA
Associate Hospital Epidemiologist
Director, Antimicrobial Stewardship Program
Associate Professor of Medicine
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Overview:

We're at a tipping point: an increasing number of germs no longer respond to the drugs designed to kill them. Inappropriate prescribing of antibiotics and lack of infection control actions can contribute to drug resistant infections such as carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) and put patients at risk for deadly diarrhea (caused by Clostridium difficile). Even if one facility is following recommended infection controls, germs can be spread inside of and between healthcare facilities when patients are transferred from one healthcare facility to another without appropriate actions to stop spread. During this call, clinicians will hear from some of the nation’s top clinical experts on preventing antibiotic resistant infections and improving antibiotic stewardship. Join the discussion to learn about best practices that can be implemented today to protect patients from these potentially deadly infections.

 

For a few earlier blogs on CRE and/or C. difficile, you may wish to revisit:

 

WHO: Survey & Analysis On Global Response To Antimicrobial Resistance

MMWR Vital Signs: Carbapenem-Resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE)

CDC: Improving Antibiotic Prescribing Practices In Hospitals

Unnecessary Antibiotic Use & C. Difficile Infections