ObjectiveTo investigate the incidence of healthcareassociated  infection (HAI) in patients in a respiratory intensive care unit (RICU)  of a teaching hospital, and provide reference for HAI prevention and control.MethodsAll  patients admitted to this RICU from January to December 2014 were surveyed with prospective targeted monitoring  method, surveyed data were analyzed statistically.ResultsA total of  561 patients were surveyed, 43 patients developed 44 times HAI, HAI rate and HAI case rate were 7.66% and 7.84% respectively, incidence of  HAI and adjusted incidence of HAI per 1 000 patientdays were 6.26‰ and 1.79‰ respectively. The main infection site was urinary tract (45.46%, n=20). Incidence of ventilatorassociated pneumonia (VAP), catheterrelated bloodstream infection （CRBSI）,and catheterassociated urinary tract infection (CAUTI) per 1 000 catheterdays were 2.73‰(n=13),1.57‰(n=2), and 3.78‰(n=18) respectively. Incidence of HAI per 1 000 patientdays between the first and second half year of 2014 was significantly different（4.59‰ vs 7.89‰；u=-1.75，P=0.04）. A total of 47  pathogenic strains were isolated, the main pathogens were gramnegative bacteria(n=26,55.32%).ConclusionThe major HAI in RICU is deviceassociated infection, it is necessary to strengthen the management of invasive procedures; targeted monitoring can find the weak links of infection control practice and helpful for taking effective prevention and control measures to reduce the incidence of HAI in ICU.