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Background: Hospital acquired infections (HAIs) is the most common cause of morbidity and mortality among hospitalised patients. Inanimate hospital objects are the main exogenous source for HAIs. Methodology: This is a prospective study conducted in a tertiary care hospital for 6 months. The study was conducted in the intensive care unit (ICU), Hematolymphoid (HL) ward and paediatric ward. The high touch surface areas were identied and their surveillance swabs were collected. In the Microbiology laboratory these collected surveillance samples were processed on Blood agar plate for culture identication by aerobic culture method and Gram positive and Gram-negative organisms were further evaluated. Results: In this study a total of 519 samples were collected from various high touch surface areas in ICU, HL ward and Paediatric ward. Among these 23.89% (n=124) were culture positive. In this study high bacterial growth was from Paediatric ward 9.25% (n=48), followed by ICU 7.71% (n=40) and HL ward 6.93% (n=36). Coagulase negative staphylococcus (CONS) were most commonly isolated from all 3 locations followed by Pseudomonas species and Acinetobacter species. Among the total MDR organisms 26.61% (33/124), the common site contaminated with MDR organisms were bed railings 21.21% (7/33) followed by door handles 9.0% (3/33). Conclusion: Environmental surveillance allows for the early detection of pathogens, including MDROs, on high-touch surfaces. Identifying contamination promptly enables healthcare facilities to implement targeted interventions to prevent the spread of pathogens and reduce the risk of HAIs.
Ankita et al. (Mon,) studied this question.