Patient Safety Implications of Opportunistic Pathogens and Healthcare-Associated Infections in COVID-19 Patients: A Narrative Review

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted the increased vulnerability of hospitalized pa-tients to healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), which significantly impact patient safety and clinical outcomes. This narrative review summarizes the main opportunistic patho-gens associated with HAIs in COVID-19 patients, with particular focus on multidrug-re-sistant organisms such as Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Acinetobacter bau-mannii, Staphylococcus aureus, and Candida spp. The review also examines key aspects of antimicrobial resistance, prevention and control strategies, and medico-legal implications. The evidence supports the need for a multifaceted approach based on antibiotic steward-ship, infection prevention guidelines, and multidisciplinary clinical risk management.