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Objective: to investigate self-reported counseling practice of primary health care (PHC) professionals on sexually transmitted infections (STI) and HIV/AIDS in Montes Claros, MG, Brazil, 2015-2016. Methods: this was a cross-sectional study using a questionnaire answered by PHC physicians and nurses; their practice was classified as being adequate/ inadequate based on the recommendations of Ministry of Health manuals; four thematic areas were investigatedcounseling provision; prevention measures; risk behavior and vulnerability assessment; serological testing. Results: 146 professionals participated (41.1% physicians; 58.9% nurses); only 25.7% of professionals reported adequate practices; the area with the highest proportion of inadequate self-reported practice was 'risk behavior and vulnerability assessment' (69.9%); physicians overall practice was more likely to be appropriate than that of nurses (OR=3.48-95%CI 1.57;7.70), especially for 'serological testing'. Conclusion: self-reported STI and HIV/AIDS counseling practices in PHC were found to be inadequate, revealing the need to intensify health professional awareness-raising/training.

Introduction: Contaminated hospital environments contribute to the transmission of microorganisms associated with healthcare. Contaminated surfaces handled by patients or healthcare professionals are a source of microorganism transmission by hand. Methicillinresistant Staphylococcus bacteria are among the main agents responsible for increasing healthcare-associated infections in Brazil and worldwide. Methods: The objective of this study was to screen and characterize methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus spp. on surfaces near patients in an intensive care unit. Microbiological samples, collected from ten beds in an intensive care unit with five sampling sites, were inoculated into a methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus chromogenic medium. MALDI-TOF and PCR analyses were used to identify the bacteria. Antimicrobial susceptibility was determined using the disk diffusion test. The presence of the mecA gene was investigated using PCR. Results: We observed that 44 out of the 50 sampling sites presented grown isolates in the methicillinresistant Staphylococcus aureus medium. The incidence of isolated microorganisms on the right side rail, left side rail, tables, infusion pump keypad, and cardiac monitor were 18.8 %, 36.7 %, 10.9 %, 2.4 %, and 31 %, respectively. The 42 isolates included in this study were identified as coagulase-negative Staphylococcus. All of these microorganisms were multidrug-resistant and mecA gene-positive. Conclusions: This study identified the presence of methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative Staphylococcus on the beds of an intensive care unit, providing evidence for the necessity of assertive actions to decrease the risk of healthcare-associated infections at the site.

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