MRSA MAY BE WAITING RIGHT AROUND THE CORNER

Course overview

Healthcare-associated methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a growing problem and a stubborn foe. Typically, MRSA is spread by healthcare workers of various disciplines that don't practice appropriate hand hygiene and can easily carry MRSA to the next patient or patient care item they touch. Infections are primary skin and soft tissue, with another significant proportion involving pneumonia, bloodstream infections, and complications of invasive devices. The good news is that HA-MRSA is treatable. Most antibiotics effective against MRSA cannot be taken orally, often leading to extended use of the invasive catheters that have put patients at risk in the first place and driving up the cost of care both in dollars and in morbidity and mortality. Preventing the spread of MRSA in healthcare facilities is key to reducing the burden of this deadly disease. The multifaceted solution is simple. A number of measures, when combined, have been shown to reduce the transmission of multidrug-resistant organisms in healthcare facilities. Effective hand washing is one of the most important. All healthcare workers as a team must discuss, understand and follow the procedures to prevent the spread of MRSA when they are working with patients.