Comparison of Bacterial Contamination Rates Between Isolation and Non-isolation Rooms

Isolation Rooms for MRSA

Rooms that currently have a patient in them that are in isolation status due to MRSA

Non-isolation rooms

Rooms that have not been occupied by a patient in isolation due to MRSA for 14 days

Presence of MRSA colonization

Swabbing of four areas of the medication cabinet will be performed (keypad, handle, medication folder and a medication). A Semi-quantitative sampling technique will be used to collect the samples. A sterile saline moistened sterile cotton tip swab will be used to swab the specified areas. The swabs will then be used to inoculate sheep blood agar plates in 4 quadrants. The plates will be incubated for 48 hours. The number of quadrants with growth will be identified. Individual colonies will be removed from the plate with an inoculation loop, then streaked onto a second sheep blood agar plate. The second plates will be incubated for 48 hours. The colonies will then be run through standard identification tests to determine if the colonies are MRSA or not. A comparison will be made between non-isolation and isolation rooms.

Quantification of MRSA colonization

Swabbing of four areas of the medication cabinet will be performed (keypad, handle, medication folder and a medication). A Semi-quantitative sampling technique will be used to collect the samples. A sterile saline moistened sterile cotton tip swab will be used to swab the specified areas. The swabs will then be used to inoculate sheep blood agar plates in 4 quadrants. The plates will be incubated for 48 hours. The number of quadrants with growth will be identified. A comparison between the sites of swabbing will be performed.

Presence of other bacterial colonization

Swabbing of four areas of the medication cabinet will be performed (keypad, handle, medication folder and a medication). A Semi-quantitative sampling technique will be used to collect the samples. A sterile saline moistened sterile cotton tip swab will be used to swab the specified areas. The swabs will then be used to inoculate sheep blood agar plates in 4 quadrants. The plates will be incubated for 48 hours. The number of quadrants with growth will be identified. Individual colonies will be removed from the plate with an inoculation loop, then streaked onto a second sheep blood agar plate. The second plates will be incubated for 48 hours. The colonies will be categorized as gram negative, gram positive catalase negative, Gram positive coagulase negative Staphylococcus species or methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus. This will serve as a baseline epidemiology of the hospital and generate other possible hypotheses.

Correlation between MRSA and active infection or colonization of patient

The patient from the same time frame in the rooms sampled and positive for MRSA colonization will be reviewed to determine if they had active infection or were previously colonized.

Correlation between colonization of other positive organisms and active infection or colonization of patient

The patient from the same time frame in the rooms sampled and positive for non-MRSA colonization will be reviewed to determine if they had active infection or were previously colonized.