Hospital Infection Control & Prevention – August 1, 2003
August 1, 2003
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New standards, surprise inspections demonstrate JCAHO’s emphasis on IC
The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations has raised the ante again on infection control professionals, drafting prescriptive new standards for 2005 and putting the field at the top of the list for surprise inspections next year. -
A few ICPs will receive a JCAHO surprise party
The Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations move to target infection control in surprise inspections next year could actually help ICPs in programs that lack administrative support, observers note. -
Draft standards detail policy demands for ICPs
The Oakbrook Terrace-based Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations proposed infection control standards for 2005 include a more prescriptive approach that already is proving controversial. -
Expert witness: Ready for a Perry Mason moment?
Infection control professionals considering the exciting trial by fire of being an expert witness should be ready to think like a lawyer and realize they are entering into a realm where there are more questions than answers, a former colleague turned attorney advised. -
Scabies: A creepy bug strikes fear in workers
Forget antibiotic-resistant pathogens and even bloodborne infections. If you want to strike fear in the heart of health care workers, mention scabies. -
Patient, Worker Handout for Scabies Education
Nosocomial outbreaks of scabies have occurred in a variety of health care settings, including intensive care units, rehabilitation centers, long-term care facilities, hospital wards, a dialysis unit, and a health care laundry, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). -
Salmonella outbreak strikes children’s hospital
A widespread salmonella outbreak that infected 101 health care workers, patients, and visitors at St. Louis Childrens Hospital may be linked to an asymptomatic worker or a common contaminated food, investigators tell Hospital Infection Control. -
Researchers find two distinct SARS strains
In a finding that may foretell resurgence of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), researchers in China have found that there may be two distinct strains behind the global SARS outbreak. -
Depression and infection lead to a fatal interaction
Synopsis: A patient receiving the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) citalopram developed fatal serotonin syndrome after beginning therapy with linezolid for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infection. -
JCAHO Update for Infection Control: Joint Commission’s request for fatal infection data may yield little meaningful prevention information
Infection control professionals attempting to comply with accreditors and do a root-cause analysis of fatal nosocomial infections must set narrow patient definitions and work closely with their quality improvement colleagues if any meaningful prevention data are to come out of the controversial initiative, an ICP warned. -
JCAHO Update for Infection Control: JCAHO posts 2004 infection standards
Editors note: The Joint Commission has posted pre-publication infection control (IC) standards for 2004 on its web site. After much discussion, the standards appear largely unchanged from 2003. -
JCAHO Update for Infection Control: JCAHO urges passage of patient safety regs
National patient safety legislation that would encourage the confidential reporting of medical errors is critically needed in todays health care system, urged Dennis OLeary, MD, president of the Joint Commission.