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Statistics for HAIs Due to Exposure to Hospital Construction Activity

Patients who enter hospitals looking for a cure may find they have been infected as a result of their hospital stay. One cause of these health care-associated infections (HAIs) is fungal infection as a result of exposure to aspergillus through construction-related activity at hospitals. Considering that construction activity at hospitals is likely to go up as hospitals deal with the rising age of the U.S. hospital stock, the hospital industry should focus on preventive techniques to prevent HAIs.

  1. Types of HAIs

    • According to Medical Mycology, HAIs lead to about 1.7 million infections and 99,000 deaths in the United States each year. Urinary tract infections account for 32 percent of HAIs. Infections at surgical sites make up 22 percent of HAIs. And pneumonia infections, at 15 percent, and bloodstream infections, at 14 percent, are among other types of HAIs. Pneumonia results in the highest HAI mortality rate. Fungal infections account for 9 percent of all HAI infections.

    Environmental Control

    • Controlling the environment while hospitals undergo construction activity has been known to have a beneficial impact in development of HAIs. Medical Mycology cites a study done in Canada on the incidence of aspergillosis in patients with leukemia while construction activity was going on, and the effect of controlling their exposure. Before the construction activity started, the risk exposure of the patients was 3.16 days per 1,000 days. After the construction activity started, their risk exposure went up to 9.88 days per 1,000 days. Once control measures were put in, the risk exposure of the patients went down to more of a pre-construction activity level of 2.91 days per 1,000 days.

    Emphasize Protection

    • The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) stresses the importance of infection control in prevention of HAIs. This includes the development of a protective environment that takes care of specific patient ventilation requirements and cleaning often to reduce the effect of dust accumulation during construction activity. Another strategy is to reduce risk from infection.

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