Surveillance of catheter-associated urinary tract infections at an Australian tertiary hospital, 2024-2025.

BACKGROUND

Catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) are a significant cause of morbidity and healthcare costs in acute care settings. CAUTI surveillance is essential for identifying infection trends and implementing targeted prevention strategies. We performed hospital wide CAUTI surveillance to establish baseline CAUTI rates.

METHODS

Data for all patients at the City Campus of Royal Melbourne Hospital with a positive urine culture between July 2024 and June 2025 were reviewed prospectively. CAUTI cases were identified according to standardised surveillance definitions, with remaining records classified as either healthcare associated UTI, community associated, indwelling catheter in situ and asymptomatic, or no indwelling catheter and asymptomatic.

RESULTS

During the 12-month period, a total of 1334 urine culture positive results were reviewed for 1042 patients. Community associated urinary tract infections were most common, followed by healthcare associated urinary tract infections, comprising 51% and 10% of positive urine cultures reviewed, respectively. Only 8% were identified as CAUTI. The overall CAUTI rate was 3.1 (95% CI: 2.6-3.8) per 1000 catheter-days and the Intensive Care Unit specific rate was 5.4 (95% CI: 3.3-8.2) per 1000 catheter-days.

CONCLUSIONS

The baseline surveillance data revealed that CAUTIs accounted for a small proportion of all positive urine cultures within our hospital. Hospital wide CAUTI surveillance presents significant logistical and resource challenges. Continued surveillance and more in-depth analysis are required to determine the most efficient and impactful allocation of surveillance resources.