On 28 January, Public Health England (PHE) launched a new multilingual survey, funded by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), which aims to gain an understanding of European healthcare workers’ knowledge and attitudes about antibiotics and antibiotic resistance.
Since the latest ECDC-EFSA rapid outbreak assessment published on 12 December 2017, 15 EU/EEA countries (Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Slovenia, Sweden and United Kingdom) have reported 336 confirmed, 94 probable and 3 new historical-confirmed cases associated with this ongoing multi-country outbreak of Salmonella Enteritidis in the EU/EEA.
On European Antibiotic Awareness Day, ECDC publishes the results of two point-prevalence surveys of healthcare-associated infections and antimicrobial use in hospitals and in long-term care facilities in the EU/EEA.
Thirteen patients with OXA-48-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae ST392 have been reported by Sweden and Norway between January and April 2018 - all returning travellers with prior hospital admission in Gran Canaria. Whole genome sequencing showed tight clustering between the bacterial isolates from the cases.
In Europe, about 80 000 hospitalised patients are estimated to have at least one healthcare-associated infection on any given day. Proper cleaning of the hands, using antiseptic fluid, remains the single most effective way for hospital staff to prevent infections that can lead to sepsis.
The rise in Europe of Candida auris infections, a difficult-to-control fungus, is of concern. The fungus spreads easily in healthcare settings, can cause invasive infections, and is also associated with resistance to multiple classes of anti-fungal medication.
The main objective of the course was to strengthen capacity in EU Member States for control of healthcare-associated infections due to multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs) in acute health care settings and to promote the broadest possible implementation of appropriate methods.
Bacteria from humans and animals continue to show resistance to antimicrobials, according to a new report published today by the European Food Safety Authority and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control. The report highlights some emerging issues and confirms antimicrobial resistance as one of the biggest threats to public health. AMR reduces the effectiveness of treatment options.