A nationwide redesign to reduce healthcare-associated infections is in the works, using information technology to build a national definition of prevention.

An increase in executive and physician leadership and improvements in general infection prevention practices are needed to help prevent HAIs and improve patient care, according to a new survey of over 930 infection preventionists nationwide.

"The information technology workgroup has one of heaviest lifts in the project because it holds the building blocks to insure definitional alignment across the country's systems and also in attempting to standardize measures across HHS," said Don Wright, MD, principal deputy assistant secretary for health at HHS.

When asked how HAI data are shared between infection preventionists and executives, 57.6 percent of respondents cited regular agenda discussions at Board meetings, but only 15.3 percent responded that senior leadership provides feedback and recommendations.

"The accurate identification and coding of HAIs is going to be challenging without collaboration across multiple areas of the hospital," said Daniel Varga, MD, chief medical officer at SSM Health Care. "Executive leadership needs to work with doctors, nurses, and infection prevention and control staff to ensure that these teams drive system design and culture change."

In order to optimize organization readiness for this change, survey respondents cited accurate and/or appropriate physician documentation of patient records (51.6 percent) and accurate coding, including accurate use of new present on admission (POA) codes (20.2 percent), as the activities needing the most attention.