Targeting prolonged short-term central venous catheters to reduce hospital-wide catheter days and CLABSI rates.

Background: The risk of central line-associated bloodstream infection (CLABSI) is associated with central venous catheter (CVC) dwelling time. We implemented a hospital-wide intervention aimed to alert physicians to CVC duration and necessity and to improve the monitoring of CLABSI prevention process measures outside the intensive care unit (ICU).

Methods: A retrospective, before-after study that evaluated short-term, nonhemodialysis CVCs in and out of the ICU. The intervention included enhanced bundle-prevention measures monitoring and staff "sensitization" regarding prolonged (> 7 days) CVCs (pCVCs). The ICU intervention also included daily CVC-stewardship visits. We assessed CVC utilizations and CLABSI episodes 20 months before to 19 months after the intervention using Mann-Whitney tests.

Results: Out of the ICU, CVC-utilization ratio (CVC-UR) and pCVC-UR reduced significantly (4.1-2.7/100 hospital days, P = .005; and 28%-21%, P = .02, respectively). Bundle-prevention measures improved, and CLABSI rates reduced postintervention (7.9-3.6/1,000 CVC days, P = .03). In the ICU, pCVC-UR reduced significantly (29%-15%, P < .0001). Baseline ICU-CLABSI rates were low and did not reduce postintervention.

Conclusions: Sensitizing physicians to the existence and duration of CVCs accompanied by improved bundle-prevention measures, resulted in reduction of pCVCs, and outside the ICU, also in reduction of CVC-UR and CLABSI rates.