As the HIM Director at a local 150-bed general hospital in New Haven County, CT, one of your responsibilities includes gathering statistical data concerning healthcare-associated infection rates. In 2013, as part of the CDC's Emerging Infections Program (EIP), the Merry Medical Center launched their program to address the growing rate of C. difficile infections (CDI) identified within their facility. The hospital's rates are improving rates due to the program. The improvement is mirrored in the declining local healthcare-associated CDI rates; however, there is no time to become lax since not all populations within the hospital see a decrease! The CEO of the hospital has requested that you review the most recent data for the ten states included in the EIP to identify pertinent statistics that will continue to guide leadership's efforts to revamp their program. These efforts will impact hospital, local, and statewide CDI incidence rates.

Merry Medical Center

Healthcare Associated CDI Incidence* by Year (case per 100,000 people)

• 2013
• Gender
• Male - 72.00
• Female - 73.21
• Age Group
• 1-17 years - 9.01
• 18-44 years - 19.02
• 45 - 49 years - 40.23
• 50-54 years - 61.03
• 55-59 years - 84.98
• 60-64 years - 128.13
• 65+ - 289.98
• Race
• White - 77.12
• Other - 55.27
• Total - 69.25

• 2014
• Gender
• Male - 70.52
• Female - 72.13
• Age Group
• 1-17 years - 8.91
• 18-44 years - 19.38
• 45 - 49 years - 40.27
• 50-54 years - 61.18
• 55-59 years - 84.64
• 60-64 years - 124.29
• 65+ - 289.75
• Race
• White - 76.85
• Other - 55.13
• Total - 68.84

• 2015
• Gender
• Male - 69.91
• Female - 72.07
• Age Group
• 1-17 years - 8.93
• 18-44 years - 19..37
• 45 - 49 years - 38.79
• 50-54 years - 60.97
• 55-59 years - 84.05
• 60-64 years - 123.75
• 65+ - 290.58
• Race
• White - 75.89
• Other - 54.9
• Total - 67.25

• 2016
• Gender
• Male - 69.85
• Female - 71.85
• Age Group
• 1-17 years - 8.47
• 18-44 years - 19..48
• 45 - 49 years - 39.01
• 50-54 years - 59.83
• 55-59 years - 84.37
• 60-64 years - 118.87
• 65+ - 291.02
• Race
• White - 74.61
• Other - 55.01
• Total - 67.01

• 2017
• Gender
• Male - 68.27
• Female - 72.00
• Age Group
• 1-17 years - 8.02
• 18-44 years - 19.15
• 45 - 49 years - 38.71
• 50-54 years - 59.01
• 55-59 years - 84.12
• 60-64 years - 112.14
• 65+ - 295.37
• Race
• White - 74.01
• Other - 54.07
• Total - 66.6

You will need to develop a digital resource for the presentation that:

• Identifies the statistics in the CDC's data sets in the 2017 Annual Report for Emerging Infections Program (EIP) for CDI that could be used to help target populations with the highest potential for impact within the hospital, including an explanation of the recommended target population(s).
• Analyzes the CDI incidence rates based on the different slices of data (gender, age distribution, race) for Merry Medical Center and the EIP group in the 2017 Annual Report.
• Compares the data with appropriate display selection for data, including graphs, trend lines, and observation statements.
• Selects format for digital resource: infographic, presentation slides, or handout.
• Uses professional language and tone with correct spelling, grammar, and punctuation in the digital resource.