In a remarkable stride towards enhanced patient safety and quality healthcare, NYC Health + Hospitals/South Brooklyn Health announces a substantial accomplishment – for an entire year, not a single case of catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI) graced the walls of their facility. CAUTIs, stemming from urinary catheters, a tube for urine drainage from the bladder, cause considerable kidney infections and other health complications, with three-quarters of urinary tract infections originating from them. Urinary catheters hence can be regarded as influencing the infection’s spread.
This significant achievement did not occur overnight; it was the result of a carefully curated daily review system, rigid accountability protocols and an unyielding collaboration among the care team. Incidentally, from the previous year, the team reported a marked improvement, when two CAUTI infections had been registered. NYC Health + Hospitals Chief Medical Officer Machelle Allen, MD, expressed gratitude towards the cohesive team for their dedication while emphasizing the critical role of the physician-nurse partnership in achieving this milestone. NYC Health + Hospitals/South Brooklyn Health CEO Svetlana Lipyanskaya reiterated the hospital’s commitment to quality improvement and affirmed that this CAUTI-free year was only the onset of their immense endeavours to render patient care of supreme quality.
Chief Medical Officer Terence Brady, MD, and Chief Nursing Officer Manjinder Kaur, DNP, RN, NEA-BC, FACHE reflected the institution’s commitment to excellence, highlighting the pivotal role of best practices adherence in achieving patient safety. Nationally, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention saw an overall 12% decline in CAUTIs from 2021-2022. CAUTI symptoms, including severe kidney infection, lower abdomen and back pain, blood in the urine, fatigue, or fever, are commonly treated with antibiotics or by catheter removal or replacement. NYC Health + Hospitals/South Brooklyn Health stands as an exemplar of commitment to quality patient safety, continuous improvement, and team collaboration in healthcare.