HOSPITAL INFECTIONS: THE SITUATION IN ITALY

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An emergency in the emergency: A recent study of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) reveals that infection cases linked to the main 8 most dangerous bacteria are over 200 thousand per year in Italy: of these, causing in total over 10,000 deaths yearly, three out of four are generated in the hospital environment.

Why does this happen?

We try to understand it by scrolling a not exhaustive list of some typical diseases from hospital contagion:

• urinary infections;
• Infections of body parts subject to surgery (infection acquired directly in the operating room);
• Pneumonia;
• Bacteremia, which has the highest degree of mortality;
• Skin and soft tissue infections following ulcers, burns, bed sores, from which systemic infections may spread;
• Gastroenteritis, a typical hospital infection affecting children;
• Sinusitis and other enteric infections in the eye and conjunctiva;
• Endometritis and other infections of reproductive organs following birth;
• Virus: Many viruses can be transmitted within the hospital, such as hepatitis B and C viruses

In addition, hospital infections may be transmitted by direct contact with parts that are thus a vehicle for infections; it could be hospital staff, other patients, visitors or even medical equipment itself.

What can be done to reduce the phenomenon, which unfortunately makes Italy sadly first in Europe?

With regard to our daily life, this blog wants to make us more sensitive to all those things that can help to minimize our risk.

With regard to hospitals and health centres, the solution to the problem of hospital infections is based on greater awareness and control of health procedures by the operators. For this, attention should also be paid to the patient and his or her family or assistants in order not to contribute to a risk increase.

Step by step, our blog is bringing you through the topic of infections prevention in our daily life, to live better and with greater awareness: Keep following us!