Performance indicators and the public reporting of healthcare-associated infection rates

Surveillance of healthcare-associated infections (HCAIs) makes evident the importance of the quality of patient care, and the increasing demand for public reporting of HCAI surveillance data and related quality indicators is thus not surprising. However, there is little evidence that public reporting results in improved patient care. Debate continues about which HCAI-related indicators are the best measures of performance and thus the most appropriate for public reporting. Suitable indicators should allow improvements leading to better patient outcomes, and should be comparable among hospitals and countries. Appropriate examples include central vascular catheter infections, surgical prophylaxis and surgical site infections.