Innovative Approaches in Preventing and Controlling Healthcare-Associated Infections: Emerging Challenges in Nursing Care

A special issue of Healthcare (ISSN 2227-9032). This special issue belongs to the section "Healthcare Quality, Patient Safety, and Self-care Management".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 November 2026 | Viewed by 381

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
Health Sciences Research Unit: Nursing (UICISA: E), Nursing School of Coimbra, 3000-232 Coimbra, Portugal
Interests: healthcare-associated infections; nursing students; nursing care; venous catheters; self care; innovation
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Health Sciences Research Unit: Nursing (UICISA: E), Nursing School of Coimbra, 3000-232 Coimbra, Portugal
Interests: nursing care; quality of care; patient safety; nursing staff; management; palliative care

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) are a major global concern, representing a significant cause of morbidity and mortality. These issues present complex challenges for nurses, nursing managers, and researchers. To effectively prevent and control HAIs, it is imperative for healthcare institutions to strengthen their reporting and surveillance systems, improve existing practices and processes, and implement professional training projects and innovative technologies. Furthermore, it is imperative to promote the development of clinical research, particularly in the field of medical devices, and to support best practice implementation projects.

In this Special Issue, we are pleased to invite nurses and researchers to present their empirical research findings on the prevention and control of HAIs. We seek contributions that highlight new developments in nursing care and management, evidence-based implementation projects, and professional clinical training programs in this area, as well as patient outcomes related to innovative projects and new medical devices.

In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Possible research topics include, but are not limited to:

  • Randomized trials;
  • Observational studies;
  • Qualitative research;
  • Systematic reviews;
  • Best practice implementation projects.

We look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Anabela Salgueiro-Oliveira
Dr. Teresa Neves
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Healthcare is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • healthcare-associated infections
  • infection control
  • infection prevention
  • patient safety
  • quality of healthcare
  • healthcare professionals
  • medical devices
  • health students
  • innovation

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

19 pages, 629 KB  
Article
The Use of Infographics to Inform Infection Prevention and Control Nursing Practice: A Descriptive Qualitative Study
by Susana Filipe, Maria Manuel Borges, Amélia Castilho and Celeste Bastos
Healthcare 2025, 13(22), 2961; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare13222961 (registering DOI) - 18 Nov 2025
Abstract
Background: Healthcare-associated infections surveillance is a cornerstone of infection prevention and control, essential for guiding effective program implementation. Timely and clear dissemination of surveillance data is critical to inform decision-making and improve clinical practice. However, traditional lengthy reports are often overlooked due [...] Read more.
Background: Healthcare-associated infections surveillance is a cornerstone of infection prevention and control, essential for guiding effective program implementation. Timely and clear dissemination of surveillance data is critical to inform decision-making and improve clinical practice. However, traditional lengthy reports are often overlooked due to time constraints among healthcare professionals. To address this, a secondary hospital introduced infographics as a concise and visually engaging method to communicate healthcare-associated infections surveillance data, aiming to enhance feedback and promote more impactful communication. This study explores infection prevention and control link nurses’ perspectives on using infographics to disseminate healthcare-associated infections surveillance data. Methodology: A descriptive qualitative design was employed, using semi-structured individual interviews conducted with thirteen purposively selected participants. Narrative data were analyzed using Bardin’s content analysis methodology. Results: Three key themes emerged as follows: Data awareness; infographic use; and team engagement. Participants emphasized that infographics simplified complex data, improved accessibility, and fostered team engagement. When integrated into educational and clinical workflows, infographics were perceived as effective tools for promoting reflection and supporting a culture of continuous quality improvement. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that infographics offer a promising approach to enhance communication of surveillance data. Their use may support informed decision-making and contribute to improved infection prevention and control practices. Full article
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