Healthcare-associated Infections Surveillance Network (HAI-Net)
About the network
The Healthcare-Associated Infections Surveillance Network (HAI-Net) is a European network for the surveillance of healthcare-associated infections (HAI). The network is coordinated by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC).
The main priorities of HAI-Net are the coordination of the European point prevalence survey of HAI and antimicrobial use in acute care hospitals, the European surveillance of surgical site infections, the European surveillance of HAI in intensive care units and the repeated prevalence surveys of HAI and antimicrobial use in European long-term care facilities.
Activities
The activities of HAI-Net are largely based on the activities of the former IPSE (Improving Patient Safety in Europe) network. The coordination of IPSE was transferred to ECDC in July 2008. In addition, HAI-Net provides support to Member States to respond to the Council Recommendation of 9 June 2009 on patient safety, including the prevention and control of healthcare-associated infections (2009/C 151/01).
The main priorities of HAI-Net are the coordination of the European point prevalence survey of HAI and antimicrobial use in acute care hospitals, the European surveillance of surgical site infections, the European surveillance of HAI in intensive care units and the repeated prevalence surveys of HAI and antimicrobial use in European long-term care facilities.
Topic page
Clostridium difficile infections
The transmission of Clostridium difficile can be patient-to-patient, via contaminated hands of healthcare workers or by environmental contamination.
Topic page
Healthcare-associated infections acquired in intensive care units
In 2014, 6 995 (8%) of patients staying in an intensive care unit (ICU) for more than two days presented with at least one ICU-acquired healthcare-associated infection.
Topic page
Healthcare-associated infections in acute care hospitals
Healthcare-associated infections are infections acquired by patients during their stay in a hospital or another healthcare setting. Although some of these infections can be treated easily, others may more seriously affect a patient’s health, increasing their stay in the hospital and hospital costs, and causing considerable distress to these patients.
Topic page
Healthcare-associated infections in long-term care facilities
In Europe, most long-term care facilities are for the elderly: nursing homes, residential homes and mixed facilities. ECDC monitors the burden of healthcare-associated infections and antimicrobial use through repeated point prevalence surveys.
Topic page
Surgical site infections
Surgical site infections are associated with longer post-operative hospital stays, additional surgical procedures, may require intensive care and often result in higher mortality.
Tools for public health
Training on infection control in the EU/EEA
Prevention and control of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) relies on specialised infection prevention and control staff in charge of elaborating, implementing and monitoring local preventive measures such as hand hygiene, patient isolation and HAI surveillance.
Organisation
National/regional systems for surveillance of healthcare-associated infections:
| Country | Coordinated network | Network acronym |
|---|---|---|
| Austria | Austrian Nosocomial Infection Surveillance System, Medical University of Vienna |
ANISS |
| Belgium | National Surveillance of Healthcareassociated infections and antimicrobial resistance, Scientifi c Institute of Public Health (IPH), Brussels |
NSIH |
| Croatia | Reference Centre for Hospital Infections, Zagreb | |
| Finland | Finnish Hospital Infection Programme (SIRO), National Public Health Institute (KTL), Helsinki |
SIRO |
|
FR-East |
Centre de coordination de la lutte contre les infections nosocomiales, Est |
C.CLIN Est |
|
FR-Paris-Nord |
Centre de coordination de la lutte contre les infections nosocomiales, Paris-Nord |
C.CLIN Paris-Nord |
|
FR-South-east |
Centre de coordination de la lutte contre les infections nosocomiales, Sud-Est |
C.CLIN Sud-Est |
|
FR-South-west |
Centre de coordination de la lutte contre les infections nosocomiales, Sud-Ouest |
C.CLIN Sud-Ouest |
|
FR-West |
Centre de coordination de la lutte contre les infections nosocomiales, Ouest |
C.CLIN Ouest |
| Germany | German Nosocomial Infection Surveillance System (KISS), National Reference Centre for Nosocomial Infection Surveillance, Charité Medical University, Berlin |
KISS |
| Hungary | National Nosocomial Surveillance System (NNSR), National Center for Epidemiology (OEK), Budapest |
NNSR |
| Italy | Regional Health Authority of Emilia-Romagna, Bologna; ICU network: Gruppo Italiano Studio Igiene Ospedaliera (GISIO) |
SPIN-UTI |
| Lithuania | Institute of Hygiene, Vilnius | |
| Netherlands | Prevention of Nosocomial Infection through Surveillance (PREZIES), National Institute for Public Health and Environment (RIVM) and the Dutch Institute for Healthcare Improvement (CBO) |
PREZIES |
| Norway | Norwegian Institute of Public Health (FHI), Oslo |
NOIS |
| Poland | Polish Society of Hospital Infections;National Institute of Public Health, Warsaw | |
| Spain | Envin: Hopital Val d’Hebron,Barcelona; SSI surveillance by Carlos III Institute of Health, Madrid |
ENVIN (ICU), EPINE (prevalence) |
* The table "Coordination of national/regional surveillance of HCAI" is published in the Annual epidemiological report on communicable diseases in Europe, 2008