Curbing methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in 38 French hospitals through a 15-year institutional control program.

Background: The Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris (AP-HP) institution administers 38 teaching hospitals (23 acute care and 15 rehabilitation and long-term care hospitals; total, 23 000 beds) scattered across Paris and surrounding suburbs in France. In the late 1980s, the proportion of methicillin resistance among clinical strains of Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) reached approximately 40% at AP-HP.

Methods: A program aimed at curbing the MRSA burden was launched in 1993, based on passive and active surveillance, barrier precautions, training, and feedback.