Sanford Health Fargo Awarded Center Of Excellence By The Infectious Diseases Society Of America

Sanford Health Fargo has been awarded the Antimicrobial Stewardship Center of Excellence designation by the Infectious Diseases Society of America.  Sanford Fargo is one of 177 programs nationwide to receive this designation since the program began in 2017.

The designation recognizes institutions that have created stewardship programs led by infectious diseases-trained physicians and pharmacists that advance science in antimicrobial resistance. The institutions also have achieved standards aligned with evidence-based national guidelines, such as the IDSA-Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America guidelines and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s core elements.

“We are proud to be the only Antimicrobial Stewardship Center of Excellence in the state of North Dakota," said Dr. Dubert Guerrero, Sanford Health infectious disease physician. "This recognition represents our commitment to meeting each patients unique health needs, and we hope our communities take comfort in knowing they will receive the best evidenced-based antibiotic prescription to prevent drug resistant infections whenever they are at Sanford Fargo.

The core criteria for the program place emphasis on an institution’s ability to implement stewardship protocols by integrating best practices to slow the emergence of resistance, optimize the treatment of infections, reduce adverse events associated with antibiotic use and to address other challenging areas related to antimicrobial stewardship. A panel of IDSA member experts in antimicrobial stewardship, including ID-trained physicians and ID-trained pharmacists, evaluate CoE applications against high-level criteria established by IDSA leadership for determining merit.