On May 30, 2017, Healthy Day News reported that Multi-Drug resistant bacteria can be found in 1 out of every 4 nursing home residents.
“Nursing home residents are at a higher risk to become colonized with these resistant bacteria” said Sainfer Aliya at Columbia University. “The residents can spread germs to other residents and not show symptoms and potentially become sick themselves. People in nursing homes often have health conditions that can weaken their immune system. They are often on prolonged antibiotic use, which contributes to antibiotic resistance. Nursing home residents share many spaces and interact with each other, giving germs a chance to move.”
As the nation’s “superbug” list grows, health officials are concerned that infections will continue to become resistant to powerful antibiotics, such as Carbapenems (a powerful antibiotic used as a last resort).
Dr. David Gifford, Vice President of quality and regulatory affairs for the American Health Care Association states, “We administer antibiotics much more frequently than is necessary. As you give out more and more antibiotics, you are going to develop more antibiotic resistance.”
Hospitals and long-term care facilities need to work together to combat the problem. Communication between facilities needs to improve, especially when someone is transferred while taking antibiotics to ensure that they finish their full course of antibiotics.
Gafford continued, “What we need to do is collectively work together to address this problem.”
Access the Healthy Day News article
Great Plains QIN is partnering with healthcare providers to slow the global threat of antibiotic resistance. We are assisting nursing homes as well as outpatient healthcare entities, such as pharmacies, clinics, urgent care centers and emergency departments develop or strengthen their antibiotic stewardship programs. Please visit our Antibiotic Stewardship Page, Healthcare Associated Infection Page and our Nursing Home Page for news, training events, tools and resources.