[Patient safety culture for health professionals in primary care : French adaptation of the MOSPSC questionnaire (Medical Office Survey on Patient Safety Culture)]. / Culture de sécurité des professionnels de santé en soins primaires : adaptation en langue française du questionnaire MOSPSC (« Medical Office Survey on Patient Safety Culture ¼).

BACKGROUND: Patient safety culture (PSC) takes into account a number of individual and organizational factors. Evaluation of PSC with the participation of primary health care professionals can be carried out through self-administered surveys such as the AHRQ's Medical Office Survey on Patient Safety Culture (MOSPSC) questionnaire. AIM: To translate the MOSPSC questionnaire into French, while analyzing its psychometric properties. METHODS: The MOSPSC questionnaire was first translated into French, with linguistic analysis included, and then back-translated into English, in accordance with the ISPOR recommendations. Lastly, the French version of the MOSPSC questionnaire was completed by health professionals from 36 outpatient structures. Study of the psychometric properties (test-retest, Cronbach's α, and factor analysis) was conducted based on the professionals' responses. RESULTS: After linguistic analysis, the notion of "team" was translated in the final questionnaire as "structure". This term was used in the pilot survey of 415 professionals. The participation rate was 64.1% (266/415); 51.9% (138/415) were paramedics (mainly nurses and physiotherapists). The Cronbach coefficient α inclusive of all dimensions was 0.94. A "reporting of safety incidents" dimension was added, and the "staff training" dimension was merged with "development and standardization of office processes", bringing to 13 the number of dimensions identified after factor analysis. CONCLUSIONS: Having been adapted and validated, the French version of the questionnaire can be used as a tool for assessment of PSC in France. It should not only facilitate the monitoring of PSC in primary care facilities, but also prove conducive to comparison of PSC evolution in different establishments. Lastly, it Could contribute to national and international research on risk management in primary care.

[Quality improvement initiatives in hospitals: which one to choose]. / Démarches qualité à l'hôpital: laquelle choisir?

The number of quality improvement initiatives in hospitals has been steadily increasing in the last decades. Most of these initiatives are inspired by three quality control and improvement models developed in the manufacturing industry: the final inspection, the quality assurance and the total quality management. The purpose of this review is to describe how these methods have been implemented in healthcare organizations and to assess their effectiveness and acceptability by healthcare professionals. This review should help quality managers and healthcare professionals to choose a model that is best adapted to their needs and expected goals.

Validation of the French version of the Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture questionnaire.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the psychometric properties of the French version of the Hospital Survey on Patient Safety Culture questionnaire (HSOPSC) and study the hierarchical structure of the measured dimensions. DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey of the safety culture. SETTING: 18 acute care units of seven hospitals in South-western France. PARTICIPANTS: Full- and part-time healthcare providers who worked in the units. INTERVENTIONS: None. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Item responses measured with 5-point agreement or frequency scales. Data analyses A principal component analysis was used to identify the emerging components. Two structural equation modeling methods [LInear Structural RELations (LISREL) and Partial Least Square (PLS)] were used to verify the model and to study the relative importance of the dimensions. Internal consistency of the retained dimensions was studied. A test-retest was performed to assess reproducibility of the items. RESULTS: Overall response rate was 77% (n = 401). A structure in 40 items grouped in 10 dimensions was proposed. The LISREL approach showed acceptable data fit of the proposed structure. The PLS approach indicated that three dimensions had the most impact on the safety culture: 'Supervisor/manager expectations & actions promoting safety' 'Organizational learning-continuous improvement' and 'Overall perceptions of safety'. Internal consistency was above 0.70 for six dimensions. Reproducibility was considered good for four items. CONCLUSIONS: The French HSOPSC questionnaire showed acceptable psychometric properties. Classification of the dimensions should guide future development of safety culture improving action plans.

Prevalence of hospital-acquired infections in a home care setting.

The aim of this point-prevalence study was to determine the prevalence of hospital-acquired infections (HAIs) by site of infection and the associated risk factors in a 'hospital at home' setting in Paris. All patients undergoing a care procedure with a risk of infection and who had been in home care for more than 48 h on the day of the survey (5 June 2000) were enrolled. A standard questionnaire was completed by nurses, midwives and family doctors. Overall, 6.1% of patients had at least one HAI [95% confidence intervals (CI): 3.7-8.5%] and there were 6.3 infections per 100 patients (infections/infected patients ratio: 1.04). The most common site of infection was the urinary tract (50.0%), followed by the skin (37.9%). Infection rates were 3.2% and 2.4%, respectively. Escherichia coli (29.4%), Staphylococcus aureus (29.4%) and Enterococcus spp. (17.6%) were the predominant micro-organisms. In multivariate analysis, the most significant independent risk factor was the presence of a urinary catheter (odds ratio=15.9, 95%CI: 6.3-40.1, P<0.0001). In conclusion, this prevalence study has provided a better understanding of the types of patient receiving 'hospital at home' care, an insight into risk factors for HAIs in home care, and a basis for improving surveillance and prevention.

Evaluation of current practices in surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis in primary total hip prosthesis--a multicentre survey in private and public French hospitals.

Deep wound infection is a rare but dreaded postoperative complication after total hip prosthesis (THP) procedures but its incidence can be reduced by systemic antimicrobial prophylaxis. The objective of the present study was to evaluate whether antimicrobial prophylaxis for elective primary THP in patients without any history of hip infection, in orthopaedic wards, participating on a voluntary basis, in French public hospitals and private institutions, complies with published guidelines. Three types of data were collected from anaesthetic and surgical records (November 2000-January 2001) in participating hospitals: (1) administrative data on the hospitals and orthopaedic wards, (2) data on patients, (3) data on compliance of practices with five critical criteria derived from published French guidelines. These criteria concerned administration of prophylaxis, choice of antimicrobial agent, dose of first injection, timing of administration and total length of prophylaxis. Thirty institutions sent data files on 1257 THPs to the coordination centre. Compliance exceeded 80% for all criteria except one (interval between first and second injection). Cumulative compliance with the five criteria was 66.9%. Major compliance failures were an inappropriate interval between the first injection and incision, and total antimicrobial prophylaxis exceeding 48 h. Cumulative compliance was 87.9% in teaching hospitals, 61.8% in general hospitals and 67.7% in private institutions (P<1 x 10(-6)). It was slightly higher when the annual number of interventions was > or =100 (69.4 versus 62.3%; P<0.02). Although the protocol for antimicrobial prophylaxis in THP was clear and easy, one-third of practices did not conform with all five standards. Knowledge of the results by the participating institutions should encourage them to set up working groups to draft care protocols for THP and other surgical interventions, in order to improve practice and perhaps reduce costs.

[Medicinal iatrogenics in hospitals. A survey on a given day]. / Iatrogénie médicamenteuse à l'hôpital. Enquête un jour donné.

OBJECTIVE: Medicinal iatrogenics are responsible for hospital admissions but also occur in hospitals. In view of the lack of knowledge, prevalence and nature of the adverse drug-related events (ADE) in the Bichat-Claude Bernard hospital group in Paris, and because of the potential severity of the latter, the Local drug committee has decided to develop a policy to manage these risks. METHOD: The first stage consisted in a transversal study on a given day in the departments in which patients are hospitalised for more than 24 hours, in order to assess the prevalence, severity and preventability of ADE and to search for factors of risk. RESULTS: 107 ADE were observed in 89 patients on the day of the survey (9.9% global prevalence of ADE [CI 95%: 8.8% - 11.0%]). Among the latter, 57 patients had exhibited at least one adverse event during their hospitalisation, i.e., a prevalence of 6.3% ([CI 95%: 4.7% - 7.9%] ). Two thirds of these patients were hospitalised in medical departments. These nosocomial ADE (nosocomial adverse drug events) were serious or severe in 73% of cases and 25% could have been avoided. The only clearly identified risk factor was the number of drugs prescribed. CONCLUSION: This review has drawn the attention of the medical and paramedical community to the need to define vigilance markers, and has provided some elements of response that should be further completed by a prospective cohort study.

Association between hospital-acquired infections and patients' transfers.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the risk of nosocomial infection in transferred patients and to determine whether transfer is only a risk marker or is independently associated with nosocomial infection. DESIGN: Retrospective analysis. SETTING: A 400-bed general hospital in the Paris area. PATIENTS: All the patients hospitalized on the days of the surveys were included. METHODS: Epidemiological analysis of data collected in four annual nosocomial infection prevalence surveys conducted between 1993 and 1996. RESULTS: Of the 1,326 patients included in the four surveys, 70 (5.3%) had been transferred from another hospital and 199 (15.0%) from another ward of our hospital. Transferred patients more frequently had known risk factors of nosocomial infection: age >65 years (P<10(-5)), a length of hospital stay >7 days on the day of the survey (P<10(-6)), at least one invasive procedure (34.2% vs 27.2%; P<.05), a recent surgical intervention (P<.05), and an immunosuppression (P<.01). The prevalence rate of infected patients was 6.7% (95% confidence interval, 5.3-8.1). The risk of being infected on a given day was more than 4 times higher in transferred patients (P<10(-6)); however, the risk was similar between patients transferred from another hospital (20.0%) and patients transferred within the hospital (17.1%). The multivariate analysis performed by logistic regression showed that intrahospital transfer, a length of hospital stay >7 days, and having had at least one invasive procedure were independent risk factors of infection. CONCLUSION: According to this study, patient transfer is both a risk marker (associated with several known risk factors) and independently associated with nosocomial infection. The origin of a transferred patient is readily known at admission. It would be useful to adopt specific measures for such patients, particularly if they have other risk factors of nosocomial infection, both to protect them and to prevent transmission of the infection to other hospitalized patients.

Association between institutionalization and carriage of multiresistant bacteria in the elderly at the time of admission to a general hospital.

The impact of institutionalization on the carriage of multiresistant bacteria among the elderly was assessed prospectively by comparing the carriage rate in institutionalized patients over 70 years of age to the carriage rate in patients over 70 living at home (58 patients/group). Nares, skin, and rectal swabs were obtained within 24 h of admission to the hospital. Among the 20 carriers identified, 75% came from institutions. Significantly, institutionalized patients were incontinent (P < 0.001), less autonomous than those living at home (P < 10(-6)), and had taken antibiotics recently (P < 0.02). The primary characteristics associated with bacterial colonization were institutional living (P < 0.02), having at least one underlying disease (P < 0.001), dependence (Karnofsky index < or = 50; P < 0.02), recent treatment with antibiotics (P < 0.02), and the presence of skin lesions (P < 0.02). Among the risk factors identified, institutionalization can be readily determined upon admission; systematic communication of carrier status of transfer patients would improve overall patient care.

Surveillance of hospital acquired infections: presentation of a computerised system.

Day by day surveillance of hospital acquired infections is a time-consuming activity. Healthcare professionals need powerful computer tools to manage and analyse these data. Such a program must include all the functions needed to manage communication with other programs in order to minimise data entry. Coherence checks are then used to validate data. Automatic production of reports, graphics or tables enables users to quickly obtain timely and representative documents regarding the evolution of specific indicators. The local person in charge for the system must be able to easily modify many parts of the program (data entry screens, calculations, checks, etc.) without any direct intervention from a computer specialist. Using this description, we have created a specific software for the management of this information named NosoCom. The program has been used for four years in France and Belgium. An English release is now available.

[Organization of the program for prevention and control of nosocomial infections in France]. / Organizacija rada na sprecevanju i suzbijanju nozokomijalnih infekcija u Francuskoj.

Nosocomial infections (NI) are infections acquired in hospitals. The aim of this paper is to describe the organization of NI control program in France. The organization of this program started in 1988 by the formation of the Infection Control Committees in hospitals. Their role has been to organize the surveillance of NI, to verify basic measures of hygiene, safety of invasive procedures, disinfection and sterilization procedures, occupational safety, and to organize the continued education of health staff members. Operational teams have also been established in hospitals. At the national and regional levels, the National and Regional Infection Control Committees were established in 1992 in order to define the national policy for the treatment of actual infection problems in hospitals and to organize the co-operation between hospitals. In addition, many research projects concerning NI have been conducted and a number of international scientific meetings regarding this subject have taken place in France. According to the two surveys conducted at the national level, in 1990 and 1996, the prevalence rate of NI was found to be 7.4 and 7.6%, respectively. The infection control program could probably be integrated, in the future, into the Hospital Risk Management Program.

[Specific features of nosocomial infections in the elderly at a general hospital center. 5 surveys of annual prevalence]. / Particularités des infections nosocomiales chez les personnes âgées dans un centre Hospitalier Général. D'après cinq enquêtes de prévalence annuelles.

Specific features of nosocomial infections in patients aged 70 years or older admitted to a short-term care medical department in a 400-bed general hospital were studied to assist in designing nosocomial infection control programs for this population. Data from five annual prevalence surveys were evaluated retrospectively. The 517 patients aged 70 years or older were compared to the 1093 patients younger than 70 years. The older patients were more likely to have risk factors for nosocomial infections including severe disease (36.2% vs 19.1%; P < 10(-6)), referral from another department (24.6% vs 17.5%; P < 0.01), a long hospital stay duration (8.5 days vs 3.5 days), mechanical ventilation (4.3% vs 1.6%; P < 0.01), an indwelling urinary catheter (12.0% vs 4.0%; P < 10(-7)), and a long median duration of urinary catheterization (6 days vs 2 days). The prevalence of nosocomial infections was increased nearly two-fold in the older patients (10.3% vs 5.6%; P < 0.01), although the difference was statistically significant only for urinary tract infections (5.4% vs 1.4%; P < 10(-5)), particularly in patients without urinary catheters. After exclusion of all patients with urinary tract infections, the prevalence of nosocomial infections was similar in the older and younger patients (4.3% vs 3.7%) despite a persistently higher frequency of risk factors for nosocomial infection in the older group. These results indicate that urinary tract infection should be the main target of programs aimed at minimizing nosocomial infection in elderly patients admitted to short-term care facilities. Faultless technique is essential during urinary catheter insertion. High-quality nursing care contributes substantially to the prevention of urinary tract infection in noncatheterized patients with urinary incontinence or neurologic disorders.