If a bed's previous patient receives antibiotics, it puts the next occupant at an increased risk for a Clostridium difficile infection, according to an article on the Becker's Infection Control and Quality Control website.
"Antibiotics can directly affect risk for [C. diff infection] in patients who do not themselves receive antibiotics," according to a study published in JAMA Internal Medicine.
Out of 100,615 pairs of patients who occupied a hospital bed sequentially, the second patient developed a C. diff infection in 576 pairs.
The risk of a C. diff infection in the second patient was 0.72 percent when the first patient received antibiotics and 0.43 percent when the first patient did not.
Why Healthcare Facilities Management Is Critical to Patient Safety 
Brookdale Senior Living Announces Acquisition of the Brookdale Galleria Community
Erlanger Health System Falls Victim to Data Breach
Technological Readiness: The Missing Construction Milestone
From Cooling Towers to Cost Savings: Hospital Seizes Power-Saving Opportunity