Hospital Antibiotic Stewardship
Hospital Implementation of All 7 Core Stewardship Elements
89%National implementation in 2019
U.S. Census Region with Greatest Implementation of Hospital Antibiotic Stewardship
Northeast95% implementation in 2019
Implementation Change from Previous Survey Year
Increased
Hospital Antibiotic Stewardship
Antibiotic stewardship has a number of proven benefits that include protecting patients from unintended consequences, improving treatment of infections, and helping combat antibiotic resistance. These data reflect programs in acute care hospital settings.
The implementation of antibiotic stewardship programs in acute care hospitals is assessed through the National Healthcare Safety Network's (NHSN) Patient Safety Component Annual Hospital Survey. Annual surveys are completed by staff in hospitals, and survey questions relating to antibiotic stewardship gauge a hospital’s uptake of CDC’s Core Elements for hospital antibiotic stewardship programs (ASPs), often referred to as the 7 Core Elements of Hospital ASPs.
Data Source
Years Included
Core Element Implementation in 2019
Leadership: 99%
Dedicating necessary human, financial and information technology resources
Accountability: 97%
Appointing a single leader responsible for program outcomes
Drug Expertise: 98%
Appointing a single pharmacist leader responsible for working to improve antibiotic use
Action: 99%
Implementing at least one recommended action, such as systemic evaluation of ongoing treatment need after a set period of initial treatment (i.e. “antibiotic time out” after 48 hours)
Tracking: 98%
Monitoring antibiotic prescribing and resistance patterns
Reporting: 95%
Regular reporting information on antibiotic use and resistance to doctors, nurses and relevant staff
Education: 93%
Educating clinicians about resistance and optimal prescribing
Footnotes
- Although the vast majority of hospitals in the United States participate in NHSN, the antibiotic stewardship data summarized in this Portal may not be representative of all acute care hospitals in the United States. Also, because participation in NHSN varies by state and by year, caution should be used when making direct comparisons of uptake of core elements between states and across years.
- Map legends are classified using the Jenks Natural Breaks method.