A joint, strategic partnership to improve surgical patient safety at the national level was announced on April 16 by leaders of the American College of Surgeons (ACS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). At the core of the alliance is a desire to sustain and strengthen quality health care by combining expertise and organizational resources in tracking, reporting, and preventing surgical site infections (SSIs) and other adverse outcomes among surgical patients.

Oak Brook, Illinois—Teaming up to provide an essential infection prevention and control (IPC) resource for health care organizations around the globe, Joint Commission International (JCI) and the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA) announce the publication of Best Practices in Infection Prevention and Control: An International Perspective, Second Edition. JCI is a not-for-profit affiliate of The Joint Commission.

Horsham, Pennsylvania—In the United States, healthcare associated infections (HAIs) and their cost to the healthcare system are staggering. The CDC estimates that approximately 1 in every 20 hospitalized patients will contract an HAI.

By Michael Millenson

Is the New York Giants bathroom more sanitary than your hospital room? Could be. And that player cleanliness may even have helped send the team to the Super Bowl.

Cambridge, Massachusetts—The Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) announced the launch of a pilot testing program designed to avoid overuse and misuse of antibiotics in hospitals. Designed in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the program focuses on a new jointly developed initiative, the CDC/IHI Driver Diagram and Change Package for Antibiotic Stewardship.