NHS Fife have updated their process for the management of suspected catheter associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI).

 

This guidance will be used in the community, care homes and hospital in-patients across NHS Fife.

This guidance has been developed for the following reasons to:

1. Reduce inappropriate culture of urine specimens from catheterised patients being requested
2. Improve the identification of patients more likely to have a CAUTI
3. Improve the results reported by the laboratory
4. Improve the service the laboratory provides to its’ users by providing sample rejection criteria

The laboratory will start applying the ‘rejection’ criteria from Monday the 18 September. All General Practice areas have been informed of this change by NHS Fife.