Hospital Infection Control & Prevention
RSSArticles
-
Cleaning Agent Leads to Asthma-Like Symptoms
Nobody wants to eradicate Clostridium difficile more than infection preventionists, but they must balance patient safety with the respiratory health of workers using powerful cleaners to eradicate resilient C. diff spores.
-
Zika Transmitted By Needlestick To Lab Worker
The question of whether Zika virus can be transmitted via needlestick is no longer hypothetical.
-
HCWs Don Gloves – And Not Taking Them Off
While medical examination gloves are a bedrock protective measure for patients and healthcare workers, some of the latter may be guilty of overkill – i.e., wearing gloves when they are not called for and infrequently changing them.
-
CDC Issues Alert On Emerging Yeast Infections
Another emerging infection is on the radar.
-
Common CMS Infection Control Citations
Even as CMS makes a bold push into regulating antibiotic stewardship programs, the agency is inspecting hospitals and finding common, recurrent problems.
-
CMS: Extends IC Across Continuum
There have been frequent communication breakdowns between hospitals, nursing homes, and other facilities as patients with multidrug resistant pathogens or some other infectious condition move to various points of care. Thus better “communication across settings” is needed to avoid situations like failure to isolate an infected patient, potentially triggering an outbreak in the receiving facility. -
CMS Regulation Taps IPs for Key Stewardship Role
It's a move to rein in drug-resistant bacteria and stop the rise of Clostridium difficile.
-
Presenteeism: Working Sick Endangers Patients
In findings that further underscore the “presenteeism” phenomenon, investigators found that more than 40% of healthcare workers with influenza-like illness reported to work, putting patients and co-workers at risk of infection, an officer in the CDC Epidemic Intelligence Service recently reported at the annual EIS meeting in Atlanta.
-
Zika Testing: Virus Detection in Serum and Urine
More widespread testing for Zika virus is now available, as the FDA recently issued an Emergency Use Authorization for a Qualitative Real-Time RT-PCR test.
-
Group A Strep Outbreak Kills Four In Long-Term Care
An unusually large and persistent outbreak of Group A Streptococcus in a nursing home was spread in part by infected and colonized healthcare workers, underscoring the importance of reporting symptoms, seeking treatment, practicing rigorous infection control, and not working sick, an officer in the CDC Epidemic Intelligence Service recently reported at the annual EIS meeting in Atlanta.