Signal infection surveillance - Trial to assess suitability in a small Western Australian hospital

Data obtained from surveillance can underpin public health activities and infection prevention and control programs. This process can be extremely important in the context of continuous quality improvement to demonstrate improved patient outcomes, and can provide reliable data on which to base decisions. Generally, surveillance data allows assessment of the size of the problem, trends over time and can assist with planning and evaluating interventions. For smaller hospitals, the standard (or outcome-based) surveillance method, which is required by the state-run health department's surveillance reporting centre (in the case of Western Australia, Healthcare Infection Surveillance Western Australia), is not suitable. This article describes a short trial of signal infection surveillance at an integrated district hospital in rural Western Australia, an alternative surveillance system for smaller hospitals, which is currently not recognised in Western Australia.