Hospital Infection Control & Prevention
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Avian Flu Rears Its Beak Again in the United States
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued an alert after a human infection with highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) A(H5N1) virus in the United States following exposure to presumed infected dairy cattle. No human-to-human transmission of HPAI A(H5N1) virus has been identified.
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High-Mortality Cryptococcosis Infection After COVID-19
A survey initiated by the Mycoses Study Group identified 69 cases of cryptococcosis following COVID-19 infection. The mortality rate was 59%, with cases in both immunocompromised and immunocompetent individuals.
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More than Half of 2024 Measles Cases Hospitalized
A measles outbreak continues to hit Chicago, while surveillance nationally found 113 cases in 18 states as of April 4, 2024. With cases both in the community and in migrant shelters, the Chicago Health Department reported 61 measles infections as of April 11, 2024.
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CDC Issues Alert on Spike in Meningitis
Infection preventionists should be aware of increasing cases of invasive Neisseria meningitidis, which currently are causing an 18% mortality rate and primarily infecting three risk groups: Black people, people with human immunodeficiency virus, and those in the age range of 30 to 60 years, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports in a public health alert.
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All In: If You Share Patients, Collaborate
A regional decolonization collaborative among hospitals and long-term care facilities that commonly share patients led to decreased infections, hospitalizations, costs, and deaths caused by multidrug-resistant organisms, researchers reported.
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Healthcare Diversity, Equity Efforts Under Attack After SCOTUS Ruling
Having seen the raw inequity the pandemic exposed in the healthcare system, one would think it has become harder to deny or rationalize the lack of diversity in caregivers and higher adverse outcomes in marginalized patient populations. But one would be wrong.
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Nursing Union Condemns CDC Respiratory Changes
National Nurses United condemned new COVID-19 recommendations by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that shortens the isolation period for the public to as little as 24 hours if symptoms abate and the person is non-febrile.
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PEP Clock Ticking After Sharps Injury
Infection preventionists involved in post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) for potential human immunodeficiency virus needlesticks should know the clock is ticking after injury follow-up begins. Such needlesticks certainly are a rare event, but the risk of seroconversion is not zero. A call to the National Clinician Consultation Center PEP line could be in order.
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New Leaders in Infection Control
The new leaders in two key roles for healthcare epidemiology and public health are Tania Bubb, PhD, RN, CIC, FAPIC, 2024 president of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology; and Mandy Cohen, MD, MPH, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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Environmentalists Seek Common Ground with IPs
Too often cast in conflict, environmental sustainability and infection prevention actually have many opportunities for cooperation to improve both missions, says Emily Mediate, MSc, MPP, director of climate and health in the United States for Health Care Without Harm, a global organization.