SMART Toolkit Research

The Searching for Management Approaches to Reduce HAI Transmission (SMART) study, funded by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), a five-year project focused on central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs) and catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs), created a generalizable management practice toolkit that can be leveraged in the improvement of other HAI outcomes.

SMART began with the observation that...

Two types of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) - central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs) and cathether-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) - are considered to be among the most preventable types of HAIs. Although some hospitals have managed to virtually eliminate these HAIs in their intensive care units, others continue to struggle attaining zero infections.

As a result, SMART is intended to identify the management practices associated with better performance at reducing and preventing HAIs. SMART seeks to open the "black box" of management practices to better understand the specific strategies that can influence HAI prevention. Through our national research we identified the following strategies that can contribute to the successful reduction of HAIs:

  • Goal Setting and Management Support
  • Strategic Alignment/Communication and Information Sharing
  • Systematic Education
  • Interprofessional Collaboration
  • Meaningful Use of Data
  • Recognition for Success

You may reach the SMART Team by email at smart@osumc.edu.

If you would like to be notified of updates to the Toolkit, provide your email address to be notified of updates.

We believe our toolkit of "best practices" can provide managers and clinical care teams with useful information and guidance to successfully implement these strategies to prevent HAIs and improve patient safety.

The SMART project was conducted by a research team at the Center for the Advancement of Team Science, Analytics, and Systems Thinking in Health Services and Implementation Science Research (CATALYST) within The Ohio State University College of Medicine. Led by CATALYST Executive director, Ann Scheck McAlearney, ScD, MS, this research team includes faculty across the departments of Family Medicine, Biomedical Informatics, and Health Services Management and Policy, as well as clinical collaborators in the division of Infectious Diseases.