Covid-19 pandemic: chronicle of responses and experiences of the infection prevention and control committee at a tertiary hospital in southwest Nigeria.

Since the advent of 2019-Corona virus Disease (COVID-19) in Nigeria in February 2020, the number of confirmed cases has risen astronomically to over 61,307 cases within 8 months with more than 812 healthcare workers infected and some recorded deaths within their ranks. Infection prevention and control is a key component in ensuring safety of healthcare workers in the hospital as healthcare-associated infection is one of the most common complications of healthcare management. Unbridled transmission of infection can lead to shortage of healthcare personnel, reduced system efficiency, increased morbidity and mortality among patients and in some instances, total collapse of healthcare delivery services. The Infection Prevention and Control Committee is a recognised group by the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention with their core programmes including drawing up activities, procedures and policies designed to achieve above-stated objectives before, during and after any disease outbreak, especially emerging and re-emerging ones such as the 2019 Coronavirus Disease. In this report, we highlight the roles played by the Infection Prevention and Control Committee of the University of Medical Sciences Teaching Hospital to prevent the spread of COVID-19 within and outside the hospital community and the lessons learned to date.

Comparison of uropathogens and antibiotic susceptibility patterns in catheterized ambulant middle-aged and elderly Nigerian patients with bladder outlet obstruction.

OBJECTIVE: Advanced age is one of the notable risk factors for catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs), and differences between middle aged and elderly men with CAUTIs is poorly understood. This study aimed at comparing the pattern of urinary pathogens and antibiotic susceptibility in ambulant catheterized middle-aged and elderly Nigerian men. MATERIAL AND METHODS: One hundred and fifty-four patients catheterized for >48 hours had provided clean catch mid-stream urine samples for microscopic analysis, culture and sensitivity tests. Eighty-two men aged <65, and 72 men aged ≥65 years matched for age, level of education, occupation and marital status were compared. RESULTS: Prevalence of CAUTIs among middle-aged men was middle-aged men was higher than the elderly (90.2% and 80.6% respectively) but this was not statistically significant (p=0.086). CAUTIs in middle-aged men with suprapubic catheters were significantly more frequent than those with urethral catheters (p=0.000). The prevalence of CAUTIs in middle-aged men with urethral stricture was different from other causes of bladder outlet obstruction (p=0.004). Men with indwelling catheters longer than 2 weeks had higher CAUTIs (p=0.000). Escherichia coli was the commonest pathogen in both groups while nitrofurantoin was the most sensitive drug. CONCLUSION: There are differential rates of CAUTIs in both the middle-aged men and the elderly with bladder outlet obstruction in our environment. The knowledge of the common pathogens and the antibiotic susceptibility will prevent irrational antibiotic use. Middle-aged men had higher prevalence of CAUTIs when Proteus spp. was the infectious agent. However, E. coli was the commonest pathogen of CAUTIs in all men. Also, middle- aged men with suprapubic catheters had higher rates of CAUTIs. Nitrofurantoin was the best drug in all men with CAUTIs but elderly men had higher rates of multi-resistance.