Approximately 1.7 million healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) per year occur in
hospitalized patients resulting in ~100,000 deaths annually (Klevens et al. 2007).
Prevention and control of infection in healthcare settings is now a national priority
endorsed by the IOM, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, and many professional
societies and not-for-profit groups.
HAIs have been identified by the CDC as a "Winnable Battle"; the action plan proposes surveillance, research, and communication. This requires
a workforce with the appropriate skills.
CDC responds to Contagion: "Disease outbreaks are natural plots for compelling entertainment. But life and death
situations and heroic scientists battling against time and heavy odds to track the
source of killer diseases and contain them before they wipe out entire communities
are not just movie plots. They really happen. And the real stories of CDC's disease
detectives and their investigations are just as exciting as anything you′ll see in
a theatre."
