Infection Control

Forge a working relationship with the lab

Briefings on Infection Control, April 1, 2009

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The 2009 Joint Commission standard IC.01.02.01 speaks directly to that relationship in element of performance (EP) 2, which requires that hospitals provide laboratory resources to support IC. You can find the standard in the infection prevention and control chapter of the Comprehensive Accreditation Manual for Hospitals. Because most infection preventionists (IP) are RNs, not microbiologists, they will need to form a continuous and reliable relationship with the laboratory. Joint Commission surveyors will be looking for indicators that this relationship exists.

Upgrading software

IC departments today need information from test results or microorganisms as fast as possible to prevent outbreaks or identify diseases. However, some facilities are still using pencil and paper charting, says Peggy Prinz Luebbert, MS, MT(ASCP), CIC, CHSP, independent consultant and owner of Healthcare Interventions, Inc., in Omaha, NE. Microbiology labs need to improve the process with software that will assist IPs by communicating results faster and more effectively. “I’m working with a long-term acute care [facility] right now, and they are still using chart reviews to look for positive cultures, and it’s just archaic and time-consuming,” says Luebbert. Many IPs, particularly in small facilities, do not realize that most labs already have the technology to report daily summaries of positive cultures electronically—they just need to ask. The Joint Commission (formerly JCAHO) will want IC departments to have access to culture reports. Although purchasing high-tech software isn’t a requirement, it will certainly be something to point to indicating that line of communication exists. Greenville (SC) Hospital has installed software called Safety Surveyor, says Connie Steed, MSN, RN, CIC, director of IC. “It’s sort of like a data miner. There is more immediate access, and we can actually set up alerts,” Steed says.

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