Healthcare-associated Infections (HCAI)
What are Healthcare-associated Infections?
HCAI refer to infections that occur as a result of being involved with the healthcare system in its widest
form – from care provided in the home, at the Doctors, in a Nursing home and care given in a hospital.
What are Hospital-acquired Infections?
This refers to an infection that develops in a patient 48 hours or more after coming into hospital.
Infections that occur within the first 48 hours are considered to have been picked up in the community and
were incubating prior to admission. These are referred to as Community-acquired Infections (CAI).
Are HCAI and CAI Preventable?
It is probably impossible to prevent all HCAI but it has been estimated that a proportion could be
prevented. It is thought that between 15 to 30 % of HCAI could be avoided according to the Department of
Health. |
