Safety Newsletters

Briefings on Infection Control Healthcare Life Safety Compliance Hospital Safety Center Medical Environment Update OSHA Watch

Your facility's infection control and prevention initiatives are in the spotlight: Scrutiny from The Joint Commission, CDC guidelines, mounting pressure from state government, and heightened public awareness all paly a role. How will you keep up?

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Briefings on Infection Control

Issue 12, December 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• The WHO offers a new twist to hand-hygiene guidelines

  The WHO released new hand hygiene guidelines last month aimed at reducing hand-spread infections in...

• Preventing VAP can save you thousands of dollars per patient

  VAP is the leading cause of death from healthcare-acquired infections (HAI), and preventing it can...

• Proper use of antibiotic prophylaxis helps prevent surgical site infections

  Although the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) upcoming Surgical Care...

Issue 11, November 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• The clean-house effect: Wiping out Clostridium difficile

  A common denominator for infection prevention practices is strong, consistent, and dedicated hand...

• The ABCs of CDC's proposed updated tuberculosis guidelines

  In 1989, the CDC announced its plan to rid the country of tuberculosis (TB) by 2010. But although...

• Passing the test: One facility's education in tuberculosis testing staff complia

  Officials at the Southern Ohio Medical Center (SOMC) in Portsmouth considered the course a...

• Emerging diseases conference

  For now, it's a problem in faraway places such as Vietnam, Thailand, and Indonesia. But what will...

Issue 10, October 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Countdown to HICPAC guidelines: What ICPs can expect

  ICPs continue to await the release of the HICPAC disinfection and sterilization guidelines, which...

• Study: Catheter reminders can cut down on infection

  Realizing that the hectic hospital environment can often make it easy to overlook nonessential but...

• Learn how to manage mold in your facility

  Microbial remediation is a relatively simple but expensive operation that is perhaps best described...

• Patient safety showcased in Washington, DC

  The House Energy and Commerce Committee's Subcommittee on Health held a hearing on June 9 to...

Issue 9, September 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Hospital staff TB testing: A challenging responsibility

  A pair of highly publicized TB cases involving infected healthcare workers slipping through the...

• Bird flu: It's not too early to start preparing for the worst

  Michael Osterholm, PhD, MPH, called it the "perfect storm." The director of the Center for...

• Tracers: An effective tool to protect against infection, JCAHO surveyors

  The one thing worse than learning that your staff don't comply with certain IC measures is when a...

• Mandatory infection data reporting legislation: Coming to a state near you-ready

  State legislatures nationwide are attempting to hold hospitals responsible for their infection...

• The Key(stone) state

  Pennsylvania's mandatory HAI reporting serves as cautionary tale Pennsylvania was the first state...

Issue 8, August 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• One facility’s answer to MRSA

  Healthcare officials at Group Health Cooperative (GHC) in Tacoma, WA, know that when it comes to...

• Saving lives, 100,000 at a time

  Sharing peer review literature on proven IC practices is the simple yet profound goal of the...

• SCIP strives to reduce postop complications

  In an effort to reduce postoperative complications, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services...

• No need to sweat over the JCAHO’s new risk assessment requirement for facilities

  Here’s advice for IC departments scurrying to comply with the JCAHO’s requirement to...

Issue 7, July 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Legionella: An underrated hospital contaminant

  A common yet often underestimated bacterium is responsible for several thousand preventable deaths...

• PAPRs v. N-95s: A breakdown of two top TB respirators

  Stuck between trying to provide the best level of protection against tuberculosis (TB) for your...

• Improving numbers of flu vaccinations among workers a primary concern for ICPs

  The CDC reports that only 36% of workers received the vaccination in 2003. Flu vaccination reduces...

• Debate over alcohol-based preps still a hot topic

  A pair of highly publicized surgical fires in the past two years has sparked a national debate...

• Patient empowerment program fuels significant hand-hygiene improvement

  A program designed to increase hand-hygiene compliance through patient participation and validated...

Issue 6, June 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• JCAHO: 12% of hospitals require hand hygiene improvement

  A 2004 JCAHO poll revealed that 12% of healthcare organizations require improvement to comply with...

• Pertussis: Ongoing threat to children

  A lack of awareness and a misconception about susceptibility are two factors that increase the...

• Hospital construction projects pose direct threat of infection to workers

  Poorly monitored on-site construction or renovation projects pose a significant risk to hospital...

• New technology aids community, hospitals in detecting infectious outbreaks

  Healthcare officials in Westchester County, NY, are catching the flu-so others won't. With the...

Issue 5, May 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Communication, technology pair up to combat resistant organisms

  Communication, technology pair up to combat resistant organisms In the community that Kingman...

• JCAHO's hand-hygiene goal under new 'three-strikes' rule

  JCAHO's hand-hygiene goal under new 'three-strikes' rule Surveyors will now score two National...

• Conduct tracer methodologies to maintain IC compliance, survey readiness

  One of best ways to get your healthcare facility ready for the IC-related portion of a JCAHO survey...

• Develop an IC plan that includes your entire facility

  Develop an IC plan that includes your entire facility When establishing an IC committee...

Issue 4, April 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• ICPs share ways to meet OSHA's bloodborne pathogen standard

  In the wake of bloodborne pathogen violations topping OSHA's list of the most cited standards for...

• Hospital-based Web sites can provide homes for IC information

  The JCAHO was scheduled to arrive for survey within two months of Dorothea Wyant, MBA/MHA, BSN...

• IC and decontamination preparation go hand in hand

  IC professionals can play a critical role in helping develop a decontamination strategy for your...

Issue 3, March 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• Hospital tries new handwashing gig

  "Please remember to wash your hands before leaving Room 334," echoes a voice from a speaker located...

• Laboratory document serves as hospital's JCAHO-required IC plan

  When an IC committee at a Tucson , AZ , hospital saw how effective a mission and goals document was...

• OSHA details best practices for hazmat incidents

  The September 11, 2001 , attacks on the World Trade Center and current JCAHO requirements should...

Issue 2, February 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• JCAHO: Be sure all personnel get on board in infection control efforts

  Every employee in your healthcare facility must get involved in IC efforts. That was the main theme...

• IC resources spread to maximum as HAI prevention in the spotlight

  At a time when IC resources are already stretched thin, regulators, accreditors, and quality...

• Personal digital assistants improve patient care, but can also harbor infections

  Hand-held computers, or personal digital assistants (PDA), are starting to replace pens and charts...

Issue 1, January 1, 2005 - VIEW THE FULL ISSUE

• 2005 IC standards put infection control professionals to the test

  With nine new JCAHO standards and their 44 elements of performance (EP) officially kicking in this...

• Keep design in mind when trying to reduce hospital-acquired infections

  Private rooms. Accessible sinks. Durable building materials. Superior ventilation systems. Research...

• PPE selection, use in forefront due to emerging infectious diseases

  Although personal protective equipment (PPE) is critical in defending healthcare workers against...