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Introduction: The topic of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) has become increasingly significant due to the advancements in antiretroviral therapies and the increase in life expectancy among individuals living with people living with human immunodeficiency virus (PLWH). We aimed to ascertain the levels of anxiety, depression, and HRQoL in PLWH. Materials and Methods: This study was conducted between March and November 2020 at Mersin University Hospital, a tertiary level hospital in Turkey. The HRQoL was evaluated using the 36-Item Short Form Health Survey (SF-36), while depression and anxiety were assessed using the Beck Depression Scale (BDS) and Beck Anxiety Scale (BAS), respectively. Based on the univariate analysis results, all candidate variables with a p value of

Introduction: The human population is aging at an astonishing rate. The aim of this study is to capture a situation snapshot revealing the proportion of individuals aged 65 years and over among inpatients in healthcare institutions in Turkey and the prevalence and type of infections in this patient group in order to draw a road map. Materials and Methods: Hospitalized patients over 65 years at any of the 62 hospitals in 29 cities across Turkey on February 9, 2017 were included in the study. Web-based SurveyMonkey was used for data recording and evaluation system. Results: Of 17,351 patients 5871 (33.8%) were ≥65 years old. The mean age was 75.1 ± 7.2 years; 3075 (52.4%) patients were male. Infection was reason for admission for 1556 (26.5%) patients. Pneumonia was the most common infection. The median length of hospital stay was 5 days (IQR: 2–11 days). The Antibiotic therapy was initiated for 2917 (49.7%) patients at the time of admission, and 23% of the antibiotics prescribed were inappropriate. Healthcare-associated infections developed in 1059 (18%) patients. Urinary catheters were placed in 2388 (40.7%) patients with 7.5% invalid indication. Conclusion: This study used real data to reveal the proportion of elderly patients in hospital admissions. The interventions done, infections developed during hospitalization, length of hospital stay, and excessive drug load emphasize the significant impact on health costs and illustrate the importance of preventive medicine in this group of patients.

Objective: Studies relevant to rikettsial biology, its pathogenesis and diagnosis have increase due to the increase of rickettsioses incidents in the world, particularly over the the past two decades. We investigated the seroprevalence of the ricketsia disease in the Mersin province of Turkey. Methods: This study included 450 healthy individuals aged 5 years and over, who had attended family health centers in Mersin city center. Serum samples collected during November 2011 were evaluated. Rickettsia antibody assays were used indirect immunofluorescenc techniques. Data were analyzed using a descriptive analysis, the Chi-Square Test and the Student T Test for comparison of variables. Results: The prevelance of ricketsia positivity was determined as 9.8%. The seropositivities were higher in males, in the unemployed, in the occupational risk groups, in people who live in rural regions, in people who work in gardens/farms, in picnickers, in countryside walkers, in hunters, in owners of livestock, in people with no history of rash diseases. When the relationship of spotted fever group (SFG) seropositivity the risk factors was investigated, there was no statistical significance. Conclusion: According to our study rickettsial disease is detected in Mersin and it was seen that the rickettsiosis disease need for more comprehensive studies to show the prevalence in all of Turkey.Keywords: Rickettsioses, seroprevelance, antibodies

Introduction: Hand hygiene is one of the most effective infection control measures to prevent the spread of healthcare-associated infections (HCAI). Water, soap, paper towel and hand disinfectant must be available and adequate in terms of effective hand hygiene. The adequacy of hand hygiene products or keeping water-soap and paper towel is still a problem for many developing countries like Turkey. In this multicenter study, we analyzed the adequacy in number and availability of hand hygiene products. Materials and Methods: This study was performed in all intensive care units (ICUs) of 41 hospitals (27 tertiary-care educational, 10 state and four private hospitals) from 22 cities located in seven geographical regions of Turkey. We analyzed water, soap, paper towel and alcohol-based hand disinfectant adequacy on four different days, two of which were in summer during the vacation time (August, 27th and 31st 2016) and two in autumn (October, 12th and 15th 2016). Results: The total number of ICUs and intensive care beds in 41 participating centers were 214 and 2357, respectively. Overall, there was no soap in 3-11% of sinks and no paper towel in 10-18% of sinks while there was no alcohol-based hand disinfectant in 1-4.7% of hand disinfectant units on the observation days. When we compared the number of sinks with soap and/or paper towel on weekdays vs. weekends, there was no significant difference in summer. However, on autumn weekdays, the number of sinks with soap and paper towel was significantly lower on weekend days (p

Introduction: Health-care providers are at risk of infection because of being in contact with patients or a variety of materials that may be infected by patients. Sharp objects injuries can cause transmission of blood-borne diseases in healthcare workers. In this study it was aimed to evaluate injuries that occurred between January 2013 and May 2015 and analyse measures which can be taken against injuries. Materials and Methods: Sharp objects injuries occurred in Diyarbakir Gazi Yaşargil Training and Research Hospital between January 2013 and May 2015 were evaluated retrospectively. Results: Fifty-seven healthcare workers (17 male, 40 female) presented with sharp object injuries. The rate of percutaneous injury was 88% (n:50). According to occupational groups, sharp instrument injuries were mostly observed in nurses (58%). Recapping of needles after injection was the most common cause of injury (28%). Needle tip was the most common tool causing injury (86%). Conclusion: Using universal precautions can reduce the risk of blood-borne infections by preventing contact with blood and body fluids among healthcare workers. To plan in-service practical training programs and repeat them at regular intervals may be useful in minimizing percutaneous injuries.

Serial perirectal swabs are used to identify colonization of multidrug-resistant bacteria and prevent spread. The purpose of this study was to determine colonization with carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales (CRE) and vancomycin-resistant Enterococci (VRE). An additional purpose was to establish whether sepsis and epidemic associated with these factors were present in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), to which infants with hospital stays exceeding 48 h in an external healthcare center NICU were admitted. Perirectal swab samples were collected in the first 24 h by a trained infection nurse using sterile cotton swabs moistened with 0.9% NaCl from patients admitted to our unit after hospitalization exceeding 48 h in an external center. The primary outcome was positivity in perirectal swab cultures, and the secondary outcomes were whether this caused invasive infection and significant NICU outbreaks. A total of 125 newborns meeting the study criteria referred from external healthcare centers between January 2018 and January 2022 were enrolled. Analysis revealed that CRE constituted 27.2% of perirectal swab positivity and VRE 4.8%, and that one in every 4.4 infants included in the study exhibited perirectal swab positivity. The detection of colonization by these microorganisms, and including them within the scope of surveillance, is an important factor in the prevention of NICU epidemics.