Qualitative Assessment of a State Partner-Facilitated Health Care-Associated Infection Prevention National Collaborative.

Background: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) funded a 3-year national collaborative focused on facilitating relationships between health care-associated infection (HAI) prevention stakeholders within states and improving HAI prevention activities within hospitals. This program-STRIVE (States Targeting Reduction in Infections via Engagement)-targeted hospitals with elevated rates of common HAIs.

Objective: To use qualitative methods to better understand STRIVE's effect on state partner relationships and HAI prevention efforts by hospitals.

Design: Qualitative case study, by U.S. state.

Setting: 7 of 22 eligible STRIVE state partnerships.

Participants: Representatives from state hospital associations, state health departments, and other participating organizations (for example, Quality Innovation Networks-Quality Improvement Organizations), referred to as "state partners."

Measurements: Phone interviews (n = 17) with each organization were conducted, recorded, and transcribed.

Results: State partners reported that relationships with each other and with participating hospitals improved through STRIVE participation. The partners saw improvements in hospital-level HAI prevention activities, such as improved auditing and feedback practices and inclusion of environmental services in prevention efforts; however, some noted those improvements may not be reflected in HAI rates. Many partners outlined plans to sustain their partner relationships by working on future state-level initiatives, such as opioid abuse prevention and antimicrobial stewardship.

Limitation: Only 7 participating states were included; direct feedback from participating hospitals was not available.

Conclusion: Although there were no substantial changes in aggregate HAI rates, STRIVE achieved its goal of improving state partner relationships and coordination. This improved collaboration may lead to a more streamlined response to future HAI outbreaks and public health emergencies.

Primary Funding Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.