Healthcare-associated infections NBEDS 2016-

Identifying and definitional attributes

• Health, Superseded 10/06/2022

The purpose of the Healthcare-associated infections National best endeavours data set (HAI NBEDS) is to support national monitoring of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), including Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia (SAB), in public hospitals.

HAIs are infections acquired as a direct or indirect result of health care.

HAIs are infections acquired in healthcare facilities ('nosocomial' infections) and infections that occur as a result of healthcare interventions ('iatrogenic' infections), and which may manifest after people leave the healthcare facility (NHMRC 2010).

The scope for this NBEDS is all public hospitals, including those hospitals defined as public psychiatric hospitals in the Public hospital establishments National minimum data set. All types of public hospitals are included, both those focusing on acute care, and those focusing on non-acute or subacute care, including psychiatric, rehabilitation and palliative care.

Collection and usage attributes

Hospital establishment

 The following terminology is used in this NBEDS:

• A case refers to a patient episode.
• Surveillance arrangements refer to the particular arrangements in place in a hospital to identify potential HAIs, and to further determine whether a particular potential HAI is healthcare-associated. Surveillance arrangements are typically undertaken by infection control staff in collaboration with clinicians.

Data are collected at each hospital from patient administrative and HAI surveillance systems.

National reporting requirements

State and territory health authorities provide the data to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare for national collation, on an annual basis.

Periods for which data are collected and nationally collated

Financial years ending 30 June each year.

This NBEDS currently only covers the collection of healthcare-associated patient episodes of SAB.

Almost all patient episodes of SAB will be diagnosed when the patient is an admitted patient. However, the intention is that cases are reported whether they were associated with admitted patient care or non-admitted patient care in public hospitals.

The total number of healthcare-associated Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia patient episodes attributed to a hospital can be derived by adding the number of healthcare-associated Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteraemia patient episodes and the number of healthcare-associated Methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bacteraemia patient episodes.

Glossary items
 
Glossary terms that are relevant to this National best endeavours data set include:

Episode of healthcare-associated Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia

Geographic indicator

Hospital boarder

Newborn qualification status

Organ procurement–posthumous

Overnight-stay patient

Same-day patient

Source and reference attributes

NHMRC (National Health and Medical Research Council) 2010. Australian Guidelines for the Prevention and Control of Infection in Healthcare. Canberra: NHMRC.

Relational attributes