Duration of Contact Precautions in Acute Care Settings

Publication Date: February 1, 2018

Key Points

Key Points

This expert guidance document provides recommendations regarding discontinuation of contact precautions (CP) at the individual patient level in acute-care hospitals employing CP for 1 or more of the following organisms: methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE), Clostridium difficile (CDI), and multidrug-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (MDR-E), including carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae (CRE) and extended-spectrum β-lactamase (ESBL)–producing organisms.

Recommendations herein are based on synthesis of limited evidence, theoretical rationale, current practices, practical considerations, the opinion of the writing group, consideration of potential harms, and a survey of 134 institutions within the SHEA Research Network, 26% of which are outside the United States and Canada.

Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)

...stant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)...

If a hospital uses CP for patients previously col...


For patients not on antimicrobial therapy with a...


...gh-risk patients, such as those with ch...


...outbreak setting, if a facility’s endemic...


Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococci (VRE)

...comycin-Resistant Enterococci (VRE)...

...hospital uses CP when caring for pat...


...ends that, following treatment of VRE i...


...ld consider extending CP prior to assessing f...


...outbreak setting and if facility endemic rates of...


Multidrug-Resistant Enterobacteriaceae (MDR-E)

...stant Enterobacteriaceae (MDR-E)...

...uses CP for patients infected or colonized...


...mends that for extensively drug-resistant Entero...


Clostridium difficile

...stridium difficile

...s that patients with C. difficile infection (CDI)...


...d consider extending CP through the duration of...


..., insufficient evidence exists to make a form...


Microbiological Screening and Molecular Testing

...gical Screening and Molecular Testing...

...s time, insufficient evidence exist...