Code
of Virginia
TITLE 32.1 - Health
§ 32.1-35.1. Information on nosocomial infections.
Acute care hospitals shall report information about nosocomial infections to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's National Healthcare Safety Network. Such hospitals shall release their infection data to the Board of Health. The specific infections to be reported, the hospitals required to report, and patient populations to be included shall be prescribed by Board regulation. Such hospital infection rate data may be released to the public by the Board, upon request.
(2005, c. 444.)
Available at: http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+cod+32.1-35.1
Note: Code of Virginia implementation is outlined in more detail in Virginia Administrative Code (Regulations).
Virginia Administrative Code (VAC)
12VAC5-90-370.
Reporting of healthcare-associated infections.
A. Definitions. The following words and terms when used in this part shall have the following meanings unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Acute care hospital" means a hospital as defined in § 32.1-123 of the Code of Virginia that provides medical treatment for patients having an acute illness or injury or recovering from surgery.
"Adult" means a person 18 years of age or more.
"Central line-associated bloodstream infection" means a primary bloodstream infection identified by laboratory tests, with or without clinical signs or symptoms, in a patient with a central line device, and meeting the current Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) surveillance definition for laboratory-confirmed primary bloodstream infection.
"Central line device" means a vascular infusion device that terminates at or close to the heart or in one of the greater vessels. The following are considered great vessels for the purpose of reporting central line infections and counting central line days: aorta, pulmonary artery, superior vena cava, inferior vena cava, brachiocephalic veins, internal jugular veins, subclavian veins, external iliac veins, and common femoral veins.
"Healthcare-associated infection" (or nosocomial infection) means a localized or systemic condition resulting from an adverse reaction to the presence of an infectious agent(s) or its toxin(s) that (i) occurs in a patient in a healthcare setting (e.g., a hospital or outpatient clinic), (ii) was not found to be present or incubating at the time of admission unless the infection was related to a previous admission to the same setting, and (iii) if the setting is a hospital, meets the criteria for a specific infection site as defined by CDC.
"National Healthcare Safety Network" (NHSN) means a surveillance system created by the CDC for accumulating, exchanging and integrating relevant information on infectious adverse events associated with healthcare delivery.
B. Reportable infections and method and timing of reporting.
1. Acute care hospitals shall collect data on the following healthcare-associated infection in the specified patient population: central line-associated bloodstream infections in adult intensive care units, including the number of central-line days in each population at risk, expressed per 1,000 catheter-days.
2. All acute care hospitals with adult intensive care units shall (i) participate in CDC's National Healthcare Safety Network by July 1, 2008, (ii) submit data on the above named infection to the NHSN according to CDC protocols and ensure that all data from July 1, 2008, to December 31, 2008, are entered into the NHSN by January 31, 2009, and (iii) enter data quarterly thereafter according to a schedule established by the department.
3. All acute care hospitals reporting the information noted above shall authorize the department to have access to hospital-specific data contained in the NHSN database.
C. Liability protection and data release. Any person making such report as authorized herein shall be immune from liability as provided by § 32.1-38 of the Code of Virginia. Infection rate data may be released to the public by the department upon request. Data shall be aggregated to ensure that no individual patient may be identified.
Derived from Virginia Register Volume 24, Issue 19, eff. July 1, 2008.
Available at: http://leg1.state.va.us/cgi-bin/legp504.exe?000+reg+12VAC5-90-370
Virginia Department of Health
Office of Epidemiology
109 Governor Street, Suite 516 East
Richmond, Virginia 23219
Contact us by Email
Phone: 804-864-8141 - Fax: 804-864-8139