Implementing a robust and successful multidrug resistant organisms screening program in a new tertiary pediatric and women's hospital

7^th International Conference on Infectious Diseases: Control and Prevention

May 26-27, 2023 | London, UK

Ogra Marufu

Sidra Medicine, Qatar

Scientific Tracks Abstracts: Clin Infect Dis

Abstract :

Multidrug resistant organisms (MDROs) are spreading across the globe in healthcare facilities leading to protracted hospital stays, increased healthcare costs and mortality. Sidra Medicine. a women’s and children hospital, opened in 2018 in Doha, Qatar. It was important to establish a robust MDRO screening programme in order to determine the epidemiology of the MDROs in the population served by the hospital. The goals of the programme are to ensure the early detection of colonised and infected patients on admission to ensure their appropriate managment and prevent outbreaks. The MDRO surveillance programme and risk based screening protocol were developed based on international guidelines. The targeted MDROs are Methicilin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), Carbapenemase producing organisms (CPO), Vancomycin resistant Enterococci (VRE) and Candida auris. The decision to target these four was based on the global MDRO epidemiology and on Qatar’s population profile. The Infection Prevention and Control (IPAC) team met with all key stakeholders and agreed on the screening worklows for each clinical division, the practicalities of impelementing the programme and the management of positive patients. This allowed for clear designation of responsibilities. In addition to the admission screening and swabbing of patients, the long stay patients (i.e. those who are inpatient for ≥14 days) are swabbed. The compliance with screening and swabbing is audited every month by the IPAC team and results are shared with the clinical units. The compliance with MDRO admission screening across the clinical units has been sustained ≥90% for the past 12 months.

Biography :

Ogra Marufu is a holder of MSc Health and Environment from Cranfield University, UK. She is the Manager – Infection Prevention and Control at Sidra Medicine, Qatar. She has published one paper in a peer reviewed journal on C.difficile which has been cited in international guidelines and other artciles. She has co-authored numerous abstracts and presented at international conferences. She is a Forbes Ignite Impact Fellowship Fellow (2021) and worked as part of a team of women from across the globe using artificial intelligence (AI) to develop solutions for healthcare challenges. She has a keen interest in AI and how this can impact infection control.