Table 1.

Core elements of contact precautions (CP) recommended by recent ESCMID and HICPAC/CDC guidelines

	ESCMID 2014 (3)	HICPAC/CDC 2007 (2)
Indication for CP	Colonization or infection with MDRO	Colonization or infection with MDRO
Donning and wearing of gloves and gowns	Gown and gloves are donned upon entry to a room	Gown and gloves are donned upon room entry Gown and gloves are indicated for all interactions that may involve contact with the patient or potentially contaminated areas in the patient’s environment.
Disposal of gowns and gloves	Not stated	Gown and gloves are discarded before exiting the patient room
Additional requirements & recommendations	Use of disposable single-use or patient-dedicated non-critical care equipment (e.g. blood pressure cuffs and stethoscopes).	Use of patient-dedicated or single-use disposable noncritical equipment
Placement of patients	Special isolation wards Nursing cohort with separate rooms on general wards Single room or cohort in same room without dedicated personnel Placement in a room with patients unaffected by MDROs but maintaining CP by use of gowns and gloves based on the patient’s extent of MDRO carriage	Single patient room preferred Cohort patients with same MDRO Multi-bed rooms with non-infected/non-colonized patients: at least 3 ft spatial separation between beds

CDC centers for disease control and prevention, CP contact precaution, ESCMID european society of clinical microbiology and infectious diseases, HICPAC healthcare infection control practices advisory committee, MDRO multidrug resistant organism