Abstract
Infections caused by the toxigenic strains of Clostridioides difficile in the hospital environment pose a serious public health problem. The progressive increase in hospital infections in Poland indicates that risk management is a tool that is not used in an effective way and significantly differs from the goals set by the Leading Authorities, the Ministry of Health and its subordinate units. Systematic education of medical personnel constitutes the basic element of rational risk management aimed at reducing the number of infections as it allows for the transfer of knowledge, development of appropriate organizational procedures, and improves internal communication. This paper presents the results of a survey conducted in hospital facilities throughout Poland. The study dealt with what medical personnel know about channels of transmission and prevention of Clostridioides difficile infections in the hospital setting, professional training and risk management in terms of reducing the number of infections. The survey reveals that Clostridioides difficile continues to be a serious problem in the inpatient care system. Procedures and management strategies implemented by hospitals in order to limit the spread of the pathogen are predominantly focused on short-term action, which does not lead to a real improvement in terms of hospitalized patients’ safety. The infection risk management system was assessed at a fairly low level. The obtained research results confirmed the research hypotheses that had been formulated.
Highlights
Nosocomial infection of the Clostridioides difficile (C. difficile) etiology contributes, in most cases, to the prolonged hospitalization of a patient, whose underlying disease is not associated with the pathogen mentioned
Other important determinants increasing the risk of C. difficile infection (CDI) are the patient’s old age, the implementation of antibiotic therapy, invasive medical procedures, multi-patient rooms and direct contact with medical personnel, which may be the carrier of C. difficile spores, especially in a situation where hospital hygiene standards do not exist in practice [1,2,3,4]
The research group consisted of medical personnel working in the hospital environment: nurses, doctors, paramedics, physiotherapists and other medical professionals employed in medical facilities and having direct contact with the hospitalized patient
Summary
Nosocomial infection of the Clostridioides difficile (C. difficile) etiology contributes, in most cases, to the prolonged hospitalization of a patient, whose underlying disease is not associated with the pathogen mentioned. Other important determinants increasing the risk of C. difficile infection (CDI) are the patient’s old age, the implementation of antibiotic therapy, invasive medical procedures, multi-patient rooms and direct contact with medical personnel, which may be the carrier of C. difficile spores, especially in a situation where hospital hygiene standards do not exist in practice [1,2,3,4]. It should be emphasized that hospitalization of the patient is nothing other than placing him or her in a potentially contaminated environment. C. difficile is the leading bacterium, which accounts for over 40% of all infections in inpatient treatment, followed by the following pathogenic microorganisms: Acinetobacter baumannii (8.56%), Klebsiella pneumoniae.
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