ABSTRACT
Nursing homes are deŸned as facilities licensed with a staff of professionals and inpatient beds that provide continuous nursing and other services to patients who are not in an acute phase of illness. Nursing homes house people who are unable to manage independently in the community. The terms nursing homes and long-term care facilities (LTCF) are substantially identical. The terms nosocomial and hospital-acquired infections (HAI) or health care-associated infections (HCAI) are also considered to apply to nursing homes for the sake of this text. These facilities share many of the same concerns about nosocomial or hospital-acquired infections but also have some unique infection problems. Table 16.1 summarizes all the potential airborne nosocomial pathogens that have caused infections in nursing homes.
