PVHMC Awarded by California Department of Public Health for Antimicrobial Stewardship Program Honor Roll

The hospital received silver designation as a top-performing California antimicrobial stewardship program for fighting infectious diseases

Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center (PVHMC) was awarded Silver designation by the California Department of Public Health (CDPH), Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAI) Program's Antimicrobial Stewardship Program (ASP) Honor Roll. The award recognizes the hospital’s best practices in protecting the community from the harms of antibiotic overuse, infection prevention and good patient outcomes in infection treatments.

The award recognizes California's top-performing ASPs that follow national guidelines that promote optimal use of antimicrobials, prevent emergence of antimicrobial resistance and C. difficile infections and provide good patient outcomes. The silver designation reflects the rigorous criteria that has been met by PVHMC clinicians and staff for their work in the antimicrobial stewardship field.

According to the Centers for Disease and Control and Prevention (CDC), the U.S. experiences more than 2.8 million antimicrobial-resistant infections each year, with more than 35,000 deaths as a result. Additional data showed antimicrobial resistance increased early in the COVID-19 pandemic.

“As the nation experiences a rise of antibiotic resistance, it’s imperative to follow the latest research and state and national guidelines to prevent infectious diseases and be able to treat them effectively to keep our patients and community healthy and safe,” says John Mourani, MD, medical director of infectious disease at Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center. “We’re proud to have earned this three-year designation that demonstrates our team’s commitment to providing the highest standard of care in our hospital.”

The PVHMC ASP is led by Dr. Mourani and Anthony Sophonsri, Pharm.D, infectious disease pharmacist. This program promotes and measures appropriate antimicrobial use by optimizing selection, dosing, route and duration of therapy. The program utilizes evidence from national guidelines provided by the CDC, Infectious Disease Society of America and Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America, and the California Health and Safety Code to make antimicrobial recommendations. The stewardship program is the responsibility of the medical staff through the Antimicrobial Stewardship Committee and reports to the Pharmacy & Therapeutics Committee.

PVHMC develops and maintains the ASP to achieve the best clinical outcome for patients while minimizing toxicity and other adverse events associated with antibiotic use, such as the emergence of antimicrobial resistant organisms.