Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia (SAB), also known as golden staph bloodstream infection, is an important measure of the safety of hospital care. The aim is to have as few cases of SAB as possible. One of the most effective ways to minimise the risk of SAB and other healthcare-associated infections is good hand hygiene.
In 2011–12, there were 1,734 cases of SAB reported for Australian public hospitals overall. More than three-quarters (76%) were methicillin sensitive, and would have been treatable with commonly used antibiotics.
The cases occurred during about 18.5 million days of patient care under SAB surveillance during 2011–12.
All states and territories had rates of SAB below the national benchmark of 2.0 cases per 10,000 patient days, ranging from 0.9 cases per 10,000 patient days in Victoria, Queensland and South Australia to 1.3 in the Northern Territory (Figure 25).
For more information, see Australian hospital statistics 2011–12: Staphylococcus aureus bacteraemia in Australian hospitals (AIHW 2013b).