Health care-associated Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream infections: a clinical quality indicator for all hospitals.

Staphylococcus aureus bloodstream (SAB) infections are common and serious causes of morbidity and mortality that incur considerable health care costs and are potentially preventable, Australia. It should be relatively easy for hospitals to collect data on the incidence of SAB episodes, to determine whether infections were acquired in hospital or in the community, and to establish whether they were health care associated. The proportion of SAB infections caused by methicillin-resistant S. aureus strains should be a useful indicator of the level of control of antibiotic resistance in the community and in the health care setting. Continuous monitoring of infection incidence would enable health care facilities to determine the effectiveness of interventions designed to minimise SAB infections.