scholarly journals Antimicrobial Stewardship in a Hematological Malignancy Unit: Carbapenem Reduction and Decreased Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococcus Infection

2019 ◽  
Vol 71 (4) ◽  
pp. 960-967 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brandon J Webb ◽  
Jacob Majers ◽  
Regan Healy ◽  
Peter Bjorn Jones ◽  
Allison M Butler ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Antibiotic stewardship is challenging in hematological malignancy patients. Methods We performed a quasiexperimental implementation study of 2 antimicrobial stewardship interventions in a hematological malignancy unit: monthly antibiotic cycling for febrile neutropenia that included cefepime (± metronidazole) and piperacillin-tazobactam and a clinical prediction rule to guide anti-vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium (VRE) therapy. We used interrupted time-series analysis to compare antibiotic use and logistic regression in order to adjust observed unit-level changes in resistant infections by background community rates. Results A total of 2434 admissions spanning 3 years pre- and 2 years postimplementation were included. Unadjusted carbapenem and daptomycin use decreased significantly. In interrupted time-series analysis, carbapenem use decreased by −230 days of therapy (DOT)/1000 patient-days (95% confidence interval [CI], −290 to −180; P < .001). Both VRE colonization (odds ratio [OR], 0.64; 95% CI, 0.51 to 0.81; P < .001) and infection (OR, 0.41; 95% CI, 0.2 to 0.9; P = .02) decreased after implementation. This shift may have had a greater effect on daptomycin prescribing (−160 DOT/1000 patient-days; 95% CI, −200 to −120; P < .001) than did the VRE clinical prediction score (−30 DOT/1000 patient-days; 95% CI, −50 to 0; P = .08). Also, 46.2% of Pseudomonas aeruginosa isolates were carbapenem-resistant preimplementation compared with 25.0% postimplementation (P = .32). Unit-level changes in methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and extended-spectrum beta lactamase (ESBL) incidence were explained by background community-level trends, while changes in AmpC ESBL and VRE appeared to be independent. The program was not associated with increased mortality. Conclusions An antibiotic cycling-based strategy for febrile neutropenia effectively reduced carbapenem use, which may have resulted in decreased VRE colonization and infection and perhaps, in turn, decreased daptomycin prescribing.

2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. S386-S387
Author(s):  
Trang D Trinh ◽  
Luke Strnad ◽  
Lloyd E Damon ◽  
John H Dzundza ◽  
Larissa R Graff ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Febrile neutropenia (FN) is a common complication of cancer therapy and often necessitates prolonged antibiotic treatment. Antibiotic de-escalation can be challenging given tenuous clinical status. Furthermore, a microbiological or clinical etiology is identified in a minority of FN patients. In 2016 we implemented several evidence-based strategies to guide antibiotic use in high-risk FN patients including specifying vancomycin use indications, minimizing carbapenem escalation in stable patients with ongoing fevers, and defining antibiotic durations regardless of neutrophil count. The study objective was to characterize and evaluate our experience implementing these strategies on antibiotic use and clinical outcomes. Methods Interrupted time series analysis of all admissions to the Malignant Hematology service at the University of California, San Francisco between June 2014 and December 2018. The primary outcome was monthly days of therapy (DOT) per 1,000 patient-days of broad-spectrum IV antibiotics (aztreonam, cefepime, piperacillin–tazobactam, meropenem, and vancomycin). Secondary outcomes included DOT/1,000 patient-days for each IV antibiotic, incidence rates of bloodstream infections (BSI) and C. difficile infections (CDI), and in-hospital all-cause mortality. A segmented regression analysis was conducted to evaluate the impact of the FN management algorithm implementation on antibiotic use and clinical outcomes. Summary statistics and time series scatter plots were used to visualize the trends and outliers. Results 2319 unique patients with 6,788 encounters were included. The median (IQR) age was 59 (46–68) years and 60% were male. Regression results and time series plots are shown in Table 1 and Figures 1–3. Conclusion Implementation of an evidence-based FN management algorithm led to decreased vancomycin and meropenem use without a statistically significant impact on overall antibiotic use, CDI rates, or mortality.While BSI rates fluctuated in the 2 months post-implementation, rates returned to baseline thereafter. A multidisciplinary effort facilitated successful implementation of this stewardship project. This collaboration remains essential to addressing future antimicrobial management strategies in this population. Disclosures All authors: No reported disclosures.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Joanne Martin ◽  
Edwin Amalraj Raja ◽  
Steve Turner

Abstract Background Service reconfiguration of inpatient services in a hospital includes complete and partial closure of all emergency inpatient facilities. The “natural experiment” of service reconfiguration may give insight into drivers for emergency admissions to hospital. This study addressed the question does the prevalence of emergency admission to hospital for children change after reconfiguration of inpatient services? Methods There were five service reconfigurations in Scottish hospitals between 2004 and 2018 where emergency admissions to one “reconfigured” hospital were halted (permanently or temporarily) and directed to a second “adjacent” hospital. The number of emergency admissions (standardised to /1000 children in the regional population) per month to the “reconfigured” and “adjacent” hospitals was obtained for five years prior to reconfiguration and up to five years afterwards. An interrupted time series analysis considered the association between reconfiguration and admissions across pairs comprised of “reconfigured” and “adjacent” hospitals, with adjustment for seasonality and an overall rising trend in admissions. Results Of the five episodes of reconfiguration, two were immediate closure, two involved closure only to overnight admissions and one with overnight closure for a period and then closure. In “reconfigured” hospitals there was an average fall of 117 admissions/month [95% CI 78, 156] in the year after reconfiguration compared to the year before, and in “adjacent” hospitals admissions rose by 82/month [32, 131]. Across paired reconfigured and adjacent hospitals, in the months post reconfiguration, the overall number of admissions to one hospital pair slowed, in another pair admissions accelerated, and admission prevalence was unchanged in three pairs. After reconfiguration in one hospital, there was a rise in admissions to a third hospital which was closer than the named “adjacent” hospital. Conclusions There are diverse outcomes for the number of emergency admissions post reconfiguration of inpatient facilities. Factors including resources placed in the community after local reconfiguration, distance to the “adjacent” hospital and local deprivation may be important drivers for admission pathways after reconfiguration. Policy makers considering reconfiguration might consider a number of factors which may be important determinants of admissions post reconfiguration.


2021 ◽  
pp. 140349482110132
Author(s):  
Agnieszka Konieczna ◽  
Sarah Grube Jakobsen ◽  
Christina Petrea Larsen ◽  
Erik Christiansen

Aim: The aim of this study is to analyse the potential impact from the financial crisis (onset in 2009) on suicide rates in Denmark. The hypothesis is that the global financial crisis raised unemployment which leads to raising the suicide rate in Denmark and that the impact is most prominent in men. Method: This study used an ecological study design, including register data from 2001 until 2016 on unemployment, suicide, gender and calendar time which was analysed using Poisson regression models and interrupted time series analysis. Results: The correlation between unemployment and suicide rates was positive in the period and statistically significant for all, but at a moderate level. A dichotomised version of time (calendar year) showed a significant reduction in the suicide rate for women (incidence rate ratio 0.87, P=0.002). Interrupted time series analysis showed a significant decreasing trend for the overall suicide rate and for men in the pre-recession period, which in both cases stagnated after the onset of recession in 2009. The difference between the genders’ suicide rate changed significantly at the onset of recession, as the rate for men increased and the rate for women decreased. Discussion: The Danish social welfare model might have prevented social disintegration and suicide among unemployed, and suicide prevention programmes might have prevented deaths among unemployed and mentally ill individuals. Conclusions: We found some indications for gender-specific differences from the impact of the financial crises on the suicide rate. We recommend that men should be specifically targeted for appropriate prevention programmes during periods of economic downturn.


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