Archive for: July, 2009
Ask the expert: Trainer qualifications for fit testing
Q: Who would be qualified to do N95 respirator fit testing in our practice?
A: OSHA does not have a certification requirement for fit test training, only that the person be familiar with one of the two acceptable fit test methods as well as the limitations of the models of respirators being tested:
An OSHA Q&A on MRSA infections in the workplace
Working in a healthcare facility of any size means exposure to highly contagious MDROs such as MRSA is an everyday occurrence. By wearing the correct personal protective equipment (PPE) and following standard precautions, workers can protect themselves from these infections, but what if an employee claims their MRSA infection was contracted at work?
The following questions were submitted through email to an OSHA spokesperson for clarification on how to determine if a MRSA infection is workplace related.
The evolution of the infection preventionist
There is little doubt the role of infection preventionists (IP) is becoming more important and more diverse as dangerous infections evolve and infiltrate our nation’s hospitals.
But it’s also a role that is new for many healthcare sectors, especially the ambulatory care sector, where CMS Conditions for Coverage now require ambulatory surgery centers to appoint a trained professional in charge of the infection prevention program. In other facilities like long-term care, or long term acute care (LTACs), the IP position is in place, but may be divided among numerous other responsibilities such as supervisor, staff educator, employee health coordinator, etc. Therefore, IPs in any setting must be given the proper training, time, and resources to do the job.
Ask the expert: Refusing the hepatitis B vaccination
Q: Under OSHA, may an employee refuse the hepatitis B (HBV) vaccine?
A: Yes, but the employer must first provide HBV vaccine information about its efficacy, safety, and method of administration, as well as the benefits of being vaccinated, and explain that the vaccination will be offered free of charge.
CDC says take these 10 steps to prepare your medical office for flu
Nothing beats a top-10 list for disseminating information that readers would otherwise gloss over. Why even this blog has resorted to this decimalization practice on occasion.
Recently, the CDC added to the wealth of novel influenza H1N1 information with “10 Steps You Can Take: Actions for Novel H1N1 Influenza Planning and Response for Medical Offices and Outpatient Facilities.” Facilities covered by this CDC guidance include doctor offices, outpatient/ambulatory clinics, outpatient surgery centers, urgent care centers, physical therapy/rehabilitation offices or clinics, and offices that provide psychological, dental, pediatric, chiropractic and other clinical services.
Weekly Poll: Pandemic communication
A blog post from last week focused on a California hospital where employees have appealed to Cal/OSHA claiming the hospital is miserly about providing N95 respirators and inadequately isolating suspected H1N1 patients.
This potential struggle brings up a legitimate question for any medical facility preparing for the upcoming flu season: Have you communicated your pandemic and respiratory plans to your employees?
It’s a lab, not a library
Is there an OSHA regulation concerning employees bringing reading material (novels, textbooks) into the lab and then taking it out at the end of the shift?
OSHA Watch—General duty clause, hazardous drug list, and respirators in the pandemic influenza plan
The July-Aug. 2009 issue of OSHA Watch updates your Quality America Safety Program manual to keep you in compliance with recent changes in the general duty clause, the NIOSH hazardous drug list, and respirator safety as a component of the pandemic influenza plan.
A recent OSHA revision to the Field Operations Manual, the bible for how compliance safety and health officers conduct inspections, has broadened the scope for the general duty clause in the area of recognizing hazards.
One IC training Webcast down, two to go
Yesterday bloggers Peg Luebbert and Libby Chinnes presented in the first of three Webcasts in the Infection Prevention Core Training Bundle.
This first Webcast addressed MDROs including MRSA and CA-MRSA, VISA, VRSA, VRE, C. diff, acinetobacters, and ESBLs. Lubbert and Chinnes focused specifically on prevention and control of these MDROs, proper contact precautions, isolation procedures, treatments, cleaning procedures, and how to recognize high risk patients.
In your face on flu facemask protection
There is a nasty situation brewing for a California hospital because workers and management don’t see eye-to-eye—better make that face-to-face—on protection from pandemic influenza.
Nurses at Sutter Solano Medical Center, Vallejo, CA, have appealed to Cal/OSHA saying the hospital is miserly about providing N95 respirators and is inadequately isolating suspected novel influenza A H1N1 patients, reports the Times Herald, July 15.
