CMS, CDC respond to rise in HAIs during pandemic

Federal officials at the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) called for a renewed focus on patient safety, in light of evidence some health care-associated infections rose during the pandemic. Commenting in the New England Journal of Medicine, the officials wrote that the health care system must provide staff with “more tools and an environment built on a strong foundation of wellness and on instilling and rewarding a culture of safety." They plan to work with health care leaders to improve data collection and oversight of quality improvement initiatives. (Becker’s Hospital Review article, 2/15/22)