Nosocomial Infection and Notifiable Diseases
Nosocomial Infection Incidents and
Nationally Notifiable Infectious Disease Incidents are easily reported and tracked in Safepost.
Nosocomial infection is the most common immediate cause of death in nursing home patients, and the leading cause of patient hospitalization. The CDC estimates over 1.5 million cases of
nosocomial infection in long-term care facilities and nursing homes occur each year, or an average of one infection per year per patient. According to the American Journal of Infection Control (June/August 1991), between 5% and 18% of all patients have an active infection at any given time with an attributable mean cost of
$13,973 for an average nosocomial infection.
The American Hospital Association (June 2007) reported the
Status of Mandatory Reporting Legislation for Nosocomial Infections that 37 states and Washington D.C. have mandatory healthcare reporting systems for inpatient hospital data. 10 states currently have voluntary systems.
Reporting of nationally notifiable diseases to CDC by the states is voluntary. Reporting is currently mandated (i.e., by state legislation or regulation) only at the state level. The list of diseases that are considered notifiable, therefore, varies slightly by state. All states generally report the internationally quarantinable diseases (i.e., cholera, plague, and yellow fever) in compliance with the World Health Organization's International Health Regulations.
