Denise E. Smith, RN, MS, CLNC, HACP-CMS, Head of Consulting & Senior Consultant

Understanding the Issue “Inappropriate antibiotic use and antibiotic resistance are major public health threats. In the United States, most antibiotic use occurs in ambulatory care and 30% to 50% may be inappropriate. The National Action Plan for Combating Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria set a goal of reducing inappropriate outpatient antibiotics by 50% by 2020. “    TA Rowe […]

More than 45 years ago, Earle H. Spaulding developed an approach to disinfect and sterilize patient-care items and equipment. His approach has been successfully used by infection control professionals and others when planning methods for disinfection or sterilization. Spaulding believed that if instruments and devices for patient care were placed into different classifications according to