Healthcare associated bloodstream infections in Polish hospitals: prevalence, epidemiology and microbiology—summary data from the ECDC Point Prevalence Survey of Healthcare Associated Infections 2012–2015

Aggregated data from the Polish Point Prevalence Survey of Healthcare Associated Infections and Antimicrobial Use (PPS HAI&AU) collected between 2012 and 2015 were used to describe the epidemiology of healthcare associated bloodstream infections (BSI) in Polish hospitals, in order to assess the rationale for introducing a BSI surveillance programme in our country and analyse selected risk factors. Data were collected according to the ECDC PPS HAI&AU protocol. Within four years, records for 71,039 patients were collected in 36 (2012), 32 (2013), 112 (2014), and 158 (2015) hospitals; representativeness was evaluated as good in 2012–2013, and excellent from 2014. HAI was found in 4,258 of these patients; laboratory confirmed BSI, including catheter related infections (CRI), and neonatal BSI accounted for 7.7% (329 cases). A representative control group was selected during a random selection process. Out of 329 cases of BSI, 48.9% were associated with vascular access, and 70.8% of them met the criteria of (CRI). The most frequently isolated microorganisms were Staphylococci with 150 isolates (45.6%). Most of them were coagulase-negative (64.4%) that usually caused CRI. Out of 53 S. aureus isolates 24.5% were methicillin-resistant. Enterobacteriaceae were responsible for 31.3% of BSI (n = 103), 50.0% of them were resistant to third generation cephalosporins and 6 (5.8%) to carbapenems. Since little is known about the epidemiology of BSI in Poland, introduction of a countrywide surveillance programme based on incidence is justified, in order to create national prevention initiatives based on local epidemiology, as well as bundle focusing on prevention of CRI.