On the CUSP: Stop UTI

Catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) are the most common type of health care-associated infection in U.S. hospitals and account for 35 percent of all such infections. The estimated cost per year for CAUTIs is $565 million, and the estimated number of deaths per year is 8,205. Yet, the vast majority of CAUTIs are preventable. The Health Research & Educational Trust (HRET), through a contract with the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, and in partnership with the Johns Hopkins University Quality and Safety Research Group, the Keystone Center for Patient Safety and Quality of the Michigan Health & Hospital Association, and investigators from the University of Michigan are implementing a patient safety program to dramatically reduce CAUTI nationwide.

The goals of this national project are as follows:

1. Reduce mean CAUTI rates in participating clinical units by 25 percent over two years
2. Disseminate CUSP educational modules to improve patient safety
3. Partner with the CDC to support the measurement and timely feedback of CAUTI and other health care-acquired infection (HAI) data, and for state hospital associations to partner with state-based organizations to address the elimination of HAIs.

This project is in the early stages of recruitment. For more information, contact Deborah Bohr, state liaison project manager, at 646-678-4280 or dbohr@aha.org, or visit www.onthecuspstophai.org.