NHSN AUR Module · data flow
The NHSN Antimicrobial Use and Resistance Module gives participating facilities standardized ways to submit and analyze use and resistance data. It does not contain every U.S. facility, every prescription or every clinical reason for treatment.
What the module is designed to do
CDC’s 2026 protocol describes two options: Antimicrobial Use and Antimicrobial Resistance. Facilities can use the module to report and analyze data for benchmarking, stewardship and prevention work. Participation requires coordination with pharmacy or laboratory information systems.
The protocol uses standardized Health Level Seven Clinical Document Architecture files. Manual data entry is not available for the AUR Module. That technical rule matters because a facility’s ability to submit depends on correctly configured systems and required data fields.
Use and resistance reporting are also separate options. Pharmacy-derived antimicrobial administration data and laboratory-derived susceptibility data follow different eligibility, file and analysis rules, even when a facility participates in both.
How data move into NHSN
- A participating facility maps eligible patient-care locations.
- Pharmacy and laboratory systems generate standardized use or resistance data.
- Software packages the information into validated CDA files.
- NHSN applies submission, validation and de-duplication rules.
- Authorized users generate datasets and analysis reports.
No displayed value may reflect nonparticipation, an ineligible location, an incomplete reporting period, validation problems or suppression—not zero antimicrobial use or zero resistance.
What reporters should request
- Protocol year and implementation-guide version
- Facility and location eligibility
- Months included and data-generation timestamp
- Validation status and known missing submissions
- Exact report definition, denominator and comparison baseline
What remains outside the dataset
The AUR Module does not replace chart review or clinical judgment. Aggregate data cannot prove why a drug was used, whether the choice was appropriate for an individual or whether a resistance result caused a specific outcome. Those conclusions require additional evidence.
Public comparisons should also disclose participation and suppression. Otherwise, a facility with complete reporting may appear worse simply because another facility submitted less usable information.