Gastmeier P, Geffers C, Hansen A, Nassauer A, Rüden H (2001): Nosokomiale Infektionen - Surveillance von Krankenhausinfektionen und das neue Infektionsschutzgesetz. [Nosocomial infections - Surveillance of infection in hospital and the new "Infektionsschutzgesetz"]
Klinikarzt 30: 200-204.

By a systematic surveillance of nosocomial infections and an appropriate feedback to the personnel on the wards it is possible to identify infection control problems and to improve infection control procedures. Therefore, the "Infektionsschutzgesetz" with hits paragraph 23 with give an incentive for the introduction of surveillance in hospitals. In order to associate the surveillance data of the own hospital with appropriate comparative data the Robert Koch-Institut recommends the surveillance methods and definitions used by the "Krankenhaus-Infektions-Surveillance-System" (KISS). This article presents the latest reference data and addresses problems in interpretation of hospitals' own infections rates.