Healthcare-Associated Infections in the Intensive Care Unit

Healthcare-associated infections are recognized worldwide as a major public health problem. Due to their frequency, cost, and severity, they are the price we pay for medical progress. Within hospitals, the departments most affected are intensive care units. Surveillance of these infections is a priority, as patients are at higher risk due to their critical condition and the invasive procedures to which they are subjected. To this end, we conducted a retrospective study in the surgical intensive care unit at Habib Bourguiba Hospital in Sfax, with the following objectives: First, to determine the rates of healthcare-associated infections and their characteristics in order to identify priority measures for prevention and treatment. Second, to enable the unit to assess its performance relative to other intensive care units based on various risk factors. In intensive care units, infection control should begin as soon as the patient is admitted. This requires a multidisciplinary approach.