Patient Safety Annual Facility Survey Reports

Reports based on data collected in NHSN’s Annual Facility Survey from acute care hospitals, inpatient rehabilitation facilities, and long-term acute care hospitals. Additional data from NHSN’s annual facility surveys are published in the HAI Progress Reports.

NHSN Patient Safety Annual Survey Data Spotlight: infection preventionists and full-time epidemiologists

Overview

The National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) Patient Safety Component Annual Facility Survey collects facility-level HAI reporting practices during the prior calendar year. The majority of all acute care hospitals (ACHs), long-term acute care hospitals (LTACHs), and inpatient rehabilitation facilities (IRFs) in the United States are reporting data to NHSN. Each year, all facilities enrolled in the NHSN Patient Safety Component must complete a survey that includes questions about laboratory, infection control, newborn care, antibiotic stewardship, sepsis practices, and water management. In most cases, the facility’s infection preventionist (IP) completes the survey; however, facilities are encouraged to work with the hospital epidemiologist and quality improvement coordinator.

This data spotlight focuses on IPs and full-time epidemiologists (FTEs) at acute care hospitals in 2021. Acute care hospitals included, children’s, general, military, oncology, orthopedic, psychiatric, surgical, veteran administration, women’s, and women and child hospitals; critical access hospitals were excluded.

Table 1. Total, mean, and median number IPs and FTEs in acute care hospitals, 2021
N = 3,904
Total Mean Median
Infection preventionist (IPs) 7,377.3 1.9 1.0
Full-time epidemiologists (FTEs) 1,698.2 0.4 0.1

Table 2. Total, mean, and median number IPs and FTEs in Acute Care Hospitals by bed size categories, 2021
Infection Preventionists (IPs) Full-time epidemiologists (FTEs)
Bed size Total Mean Median Total Mean Median
< 50 beds (N = 876) 894.0 1.0 1.0 229.7 0.3 0.0
50–150 beds (N = 1,255) 1,520.7 1.2 1.0 425.1 0.33 0.0
150–250 beds (N = 730) 1,268.7 1.7 1.5 310.7 0.4 0.1
250+ beds (N = 1,043) 3,693.9 3.5 3.0 732.8 0.7 0.3

Table 3. Total, mean, and median number IPs and FTEs in Acute Care Hospitals by teaching affiliation, 2021
  Infection Preventionists (IPs) Full-time epidemiologists (FTEs)
Teaching affiliation Total Mean Median Total Mean Median
Major teaching school (N = 1,401) 3,950.7 2.8 2.0 787.1 0.6 0.3
Graduate medical school (N = 581) 1,071.9 1.8 1.1 299.1 0.5 0.1
Undergraduate medical school (N = 528) 729.4 1.4 1.0 152.5 0.3 0.0
Non-teaching (N = 1,394) 1,625.3 1.2 1.0 459.4 0.3 0.0

 

Conclusions

Among acute care hospitals in 2021, the median number of IPs was 1.89, and the median number of FTEs was 0.43. The mean number of IPs and FTEs increased as facility bed size increased. In addition, facilities that identified as major teaching facilities had the greatest mean and median number of IPs and FTEs, and non-teaching facilities reported the lowest mean and median number of IPs and FTEs.

Data source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN)

For more information: https://www.cdc.gov/nhsn/psc/locations.html.

 

Page last reviewed: [Update when published]

Content source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infectious Diseases (NCEZID) , Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion (DHQP)