Why a Campaign?
Drug-resistant
pathogens are a growing threat to all people, especially in healthcare
settings.
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Each
year nearly 2 million patients in the United States get an infection
in a hospital. |
|
Of
those patients, about 90,000 die as a result of their infection. |
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More than 70% of the bacteria that cause hospital-acquired infections
are resistant to at least one of the drugs most commonly used
to treat them. |
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Persons
infected with drug-resistant organisms are more likely to have
longer hospital stays and require treatment with second- or
third-choice drugs that may be less effective, more toxic, and/or
more expensive. |
Risk
factors that promote antimicrobial resistance in healthcare settings
include:
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