Establishment—number of cases of healthcare associated Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream infection, total number N[NNNNN]

Identifying and definitional attributes

• National Health Performance Authority (retired), Retired 01/07/2016

Value domain attributes

Representational attributes

Source and reference attributes

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare

Data element attributes

Collection and usage attributes

This data element is the sum of all cases of healthcare-associated Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream infections in a hospital.

A patient-episode of Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream infection (SAB) is defined as a positive blood culture for Staphylococcus aureus. For surveillance purposes, only the first isolate per patient is counted, unless at least 14 days has passed without a positive blood culture, after which an additional episode is recorded.

Cases of SAB will be considered to be healthcare-associated if either:

a) the patient’s first SAB blood culture was collected more than 48 hours after hospital admission or less than 48 hours after discharge

OR

b) the patient’s first SAB blood culture was collected less than or equal to 48 hours after hospital admission and one or more of the following key clinical criteria was met for the patient-episode of SAB:

1. SAB is a complication of the presence of an indwelling medical device (e.g. intravascular line, haemodialysis vascular access, CSF shunt, urinary catheter)
2. SAB occurs within 30 days of a surgical procedure where the SAB is related to the surgical site
3. SAB was diagnosed within 48 hours of a related invasive instrumentation or incision
4. SAB is associated with neutropenia (Neutrophils: less than 1 x 10⁹/L) contributed to by cytotoxic therapy.

If none of these criteria are met, then the SAB will be considered to be community-acquired for the purposes of surveillance.

Cases of SAB for unqualified newborns are included in the count while cases for posthumous organ procurement and hospital boarders are excluded.

These criteria were established by the Australian Commission for Safety and Quality in Health Care and refined for hospital-level reporting by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. This evolution has resulted in some differences between definitions based on additional inclusion and exclusion criteria, most significantly that:

1) Unqualified newborn cases and bed days under surveillance are included

2) Hospital boarders and posthumous organ procurement cases and bed days under surveillance are excluded.

Source and reference attributes

Relational attributes