All Entries in the "Infection control" Category
Flu vaccinations among nursing units
Despite a relatively mild flu season so far in 2011-2012, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) maintains its recommendation that anyone older than six months should receive a flu vaccine, particularly those at high risk for developing serious complications from the flu. These high-risk individuals include pregnant women, children under the age of five, adults over the age of 50, anyone with chronic medical conditions, and people who live with or care for high-risk individuals, such as healthcare workers.
In a recent poll on StrategiesforNurseManagers.com, 52% of respondents indicated that more than 90% of their units’ nurses had received a seasonal flu shot, and 18% reported that 70%-89% of staff nurses were vaccinated.
Only 5% of respondents replied that less than half of their units’ nurses have received flu vaccines.
Does your hospital have a policy regarding flu shots? Are most of your nurses vaccinated? Share your thoughts in the comments section!
Joint Commission releases R3 report looking at CAUTI
The Joint Commission has just released a new R3 report examining the 2012 National Patient Safety Goal (NPSG) related to catheter-associated urinary tract infections, or CAUTI.
CAUTI is the leading healthcare-associated infection, with roughly 450,000 cases reported in hospitals every year. The Joint Commission added a new NPSG, going into effect January 1, 2012, to require hospitals to minimize the risks for CAUTI through better processes and practices.
For more information on the R3 report, visit The Joint Commission’s website.
Research shows simple post-surgical step reduces infections
by Matt Phillion, for the AHAP blog
According to the latest edition of the Archive of Surgery, a basic bedside technique of gently probing a surgical incision to clean the area can result in significantly reduced rates of infection, Internal Medicine News reports.
According to the report, over a three year period, researchers assessed surgical site infections in 76 adults who underwent appendectomy for perforated appendicitis at one hospital. Only 3% of the patients who received the gentle probing contracted an infection, while 19% contracted infection in the control group. In addition, those patients who received the probing technique had their length of stay reduced.
Researchers theorized that allowing for drainage of the wound was the reason behind these better results, though they were unsure the precise reason as to why this practice cut down on infections.
Animated short reminds patients to “Speak Up”
Matt Phillion, for the AHAP blog, April 8, 2011
The Joint Commission’s Speak Up ™ campaign has launched the second in a series of animated shorts aimed at helping patients and their families advocate for safe practices during their care. The latest short targets infection control, specifically hand hygiene.
These shorts are intended to be educational and entertaining, as well as accessible to a wide audience and age range. They can be viewed on The Joint Commission’s YouTube channel.
It is also possible to obtain a downloadable version of the video. For more information, visit The Joint Commission’s web site here.
California nurses union calls off strike about H1N1
Last week, the California Nurses Union (CNU/NNOC) reached a dramatic settlement that prevented a nurse strike and will establish a national standard on containing the spread of pandemics such as H1N1, also known as the “swine flu.”
Originally set to strike on October 30—over the issue of protecting nurses from the H1N1 virus—CNU/NNOC called off the strike on Tuesday, October 27. The strike would have involved more than 13,000 registered nurses in 32 hospitals in the San Francisco-based Catholic Healthcare West (CHW) hospitals in California and Nevada.
The new agreement calls for the creation of a systemwide task force where CNA/NNOC RNs and hospital representatives will focus on the declaration of pandemic emergencies with the help of facility infection control teams. The task force will monitor the full implementation of federal, state, and local guidelines. They will also set up standards regarding checking the availability of proper safety equipment, communication and training policies for all hospital personnel, and consideration of off-site emergency triage and treatment.
Under the settlement, all CHW facilities need an employer agreement to comply with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and California Occupational Safety and Health Administration, along with those rules set in the CNA/NNOC contract. All CHW nurses will be provided the proper equipment and attire to prevent further spread of any virus, and facilities will provide each staff member with the proper training and information on communicable diseases to which they may have been exposed.
Forty-eight states have now reported widespread flu activity, and the death toll from the H1N1 virus in the United States has climbed to more than 1,000 cases, including more than 100 children. Thirty million doses of the vaccine have gone out to health departments, physician’s offices, and other providers, with hopes of delivering 120 million in the near future.
Does your facility provide staff members with education about pandemics? Do you think other states will follow California’s example? What are ways your facility helps prevent the spread of H1N1 virus?
To vaccine or not! The results are in…
In a recent poll question on StrategiesForNurseManages.com and StressedOutNurses.com readers were asked whether they were going to get an H1N1 vaccination.
The results are in, and 55% of SFNM.com readers said they planned to get the vaccine, as opposed to 45% who said they would not.
On the StressedOutNurses Web site, 52% of readers said they would be getting the vaccine, while 18% said they had not yet decided.
What do you plan to do? Post your comment and tell us if you’ve received your H1N1 vaccine or not!
H1N1 flu conditions have nurses’ union ready to strike
The California Nurses Association (CNA) announced on Monday that its members may participate in a one-day strike on October 30 due to concerns regarding healthcare organizations’ inadequate safety precautions regarding the H1N1 pandemic. The strike would involve more than 16,000 registered nurses at more than 30 hospitals, targeting three large California hospital chains.
The CNA says nurses are concerned about safety preparations to protect patients, families, and healthcare workers during an H1N1 pandemic. Specific areas of concern include isolating patients with symptoms to prevent contagion and adequate supplies of fit-tested N95 respirators.
The CNA also wants California hospitals to adopt guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Occupational Safety and Health Administration. They say this would ensure that all hospitals in the California area meet the highest safety measures demanded and that they be uniform throughout the state.
Interactive Web site helps determine when flu symptoms are serious and when to seek help
Trying to decide whether that cough and on and off fever is something you should go see your doctor about? Debating to wait in the crowded Emergency Room for hours to see if you have swine flu? Well, what if you could determine the severity of your symptoms and whether a visit to the doctor is necessary, without ever leaving the comfort of your own home.
Microsoft has launched an interactive Web site; H1N1 Response Center, that will help determine just that. Using an assessment tool licensed by Emory University, the Web site aims to help consumers’ determine whether or not their symptoms are consistent with the H1N1 virus and if they should seek medical help. [more]
Mandatory H1N1 flu vaccination causes controversy
The first doses of the H1N1 vaccination have officially arrived in the United States and a nurse was one of the first to receive the vaccine. Holly Smith is a pediatric nurse at Le Bonheur Children’s Medical Center, in Memphis, TN, and mother of two children. Smith reported that she chose to be vaccinated for the sake of her kids, as well as for the children she works with.
Le Bonheur has seen numerous cases of H1N1 since late August and received 100 doses of nasal spray vaccine. The vaccines were given to healthcare workers in an outdoor tent set up to treat children with flu symptoms and keep them separate from other patients.
Public health authorities in 21 other states and four large cities, Chicago, New York, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC, have been shipped the swine flu vaccination, roughly totaling 600,000 doses.
As vaccines are shipped around the country, many hospitals, university health systems, and even some states are requiring that all healthcare workers receive the H1N1 flu vaccine, or either spend the flu season wearing a mask or risk losing their job.
Pandemic preparation: How to prepare for swine flu
As the fall and winter months approach, hospitals are gearing up for more than the average flu season. Officials are predicting that the outbreak of the H1N1 virus, or swine flu, will hit the country much harder than in the spring and that as many as half the population may become infected.
The Washington Post reports the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology has warned that as many as 1.8 million people could be hospitalized by the H1N1 virus, causing as many as 90,000 deaths. The 86-page report offers guidance on the nation’s response to the first influenza pandemic in 41 years. [more]
