Hospital Infection Control & Prevention – November 1, 2011
November 1, 2011
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Infection preventionists, take a (brief) bow: Key HAIs falling, major challenges remain
The needle is beginning to move. Four key healthcare associated infections (HAIs) are declining nationally as the result of unprecedented interest and action that includes everything from sweeping state and federal collaboratives to the outrage of individual patients. -
Do you know where your flagged MDRO pts are?
With the increasing reliance on computer tools and electronic records, infection preventionists may reasonably assume patients flagged for isolation on admission end up under the appropriate precautions. -
Getting pts in isolation, and keeping them there
Key program elements of a patient isolation program at the University of Chicago Medical Center include the following: -
iP Newbe: Part II: 'The Just One More Thing Strategy'
[Editor's note: In this issue we continue with the second part of Patti Grant's IP Newbie column that was featured in our September issue. As you may recall, she described an all too common situation: How various professionals in healthcare are expected to participate in activities beyond their original area of expertise. This expectation does not seem so much a direct consequence of the struggling economy as a reflection of the attempt by various specialties to move from "silos" to a team approach to problem solving, Grant noted, observing that "Patient safety will most likely be less precarious in this multi-disciplinary improvement environment, but it can come with hefty growing pains." Of course, as an IP Newbie, you're often the one growing.] -
Honesty with infected pt irks colleague
Doing the right thing doesn't guarantee that everyone is going to be pleased, says Frederick S. Southwick, MD, professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases and quality projects manager for the senior vice president for health affairs at the University of Florida Shands Health in Gainesville. -
Many HCWs don't know correct PPE sequence
Your annual training in the use of personal protective equipment may not be good enough. According to a study of PPE use during the H1N1 pandemic in Canada, most health care workers don't know how to choose the right items or how to put them on or take them off correctly. -
Transferring more than patients
Emerging multidrug resistant gram negative bacteria continue to spread across the health care continuum, becoming entrenched in non-acute and long term care settings and threatening vulnerable hospital patients with untreatable infections. -
Counterintuitive: Move To EHR spikes rates?
Your move to an electronic health record (EHR) system will save you time and money while increasing your ... infection rates? How could this happen? -
The Joint Commission Update for Infection Control: Joint Commission: New year will usher in new CAUTI prevention requirements
The Joint Commission's new National Patient Safety Goal (NPSG) on preventing indwelling catheter-associated urinary tract infections which emphasizes prompt removal of unnecessary devices and surveillance for CAUTIs is effective January 1, 2012 for hospitals. -
The Joint Commission Update for Infection Control: Follow the fab four
The elements of performance for the CAUTI prevention safety goal are as follows: -
The Joint Commission Update for Infection Control: VA programs cuts CLABSIs by >50%
The Joint Commission targets central lineassociated bloodstream infections in its 2011 national patient safety goals, with NPSG.07.04.01 calling for hospitals to "implement evidence-based practices to prevent (CLABSIs)." -
The Joint Commission Update for Infection Control: JC Q&A: Active testing for MRSA
The Joint Commission recently posted the following answer to a frequently asked question on screening for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).