Healthcare-associated pneumonia: approach to management.

Healthcare-associated pneumonia patients have worse outcomes and a different microbiologic profile than those with community-acquired pneumonia, including a greater risk for multidrug-resistant (MDR) organism infection. Risks include hospitalization for 2 or more days within 90 days, presentation from a nursing home or long-term care facility, attending a hospital or hemodialysis clinic, receiving intravenous therapy within 30 days, and immunosuppression. Ability to predict infection with MDR organisms varies, and the relative frequency of MDR organisms varies by geographic region. Initial treatment is broad-spectrum empiric antibiotics.