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The Ethics of Empowering Patients as Partners in Healthcare-Associated Infection Prevention

Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) occur when patients acquire infections in a hospital or healthcare setting or from a healthcare intervention. A major patient safety issue, HAIs encompass a wide range of pathogens and infections and contribute substantially to morbidity, mortality, and burgeoning healthcare costs. HAIs affect approximately 2 million hospitalized patients and cause roughly 100,000 deaths annually in the U.S alone. (1). Many, if not most, HAIs are preventable through evidence-based infection control interventions (2, 3). Strategies promoting adherence to HAIs prevention guidelines are welcome steps towards safer healthcare environments for patients. 
 
Despite increasing attention to prevention strategies, surprisingly little thought has been given to how, if at all, patients should be informed about and empowered to contribute to HAI prevention. Considerations of patient autonomy support informing patients about the risk of HAIs. Empowering patients, as part of a multifaceted HAI prevention strategy, might be beneficial in reducing HAIs and improving outcomes. (4)