Celebrate International Infection Prevention Week
APIC, in collaboration with 3M, has proclaimed this week “International Infection Prevention Week” (October 18-24), and it’s urging all 50 states across the U.S. and Congress to do the same.
Touting the tag line, “Infection prevention is everyone’s business,” the association’s goal is to bring greater attention to protecting patients from HAIs.
APIC and 3M kicked off the week on Friday by awarding the first annual Healthcare Administrator Award to Deborah Friberg, chief operating officer and executive vice president of WakeMed Health and Hospitals, in Raleigh, North Carolina. Friberg has been a leader at the 810-bed not-for-profit hospital for 14 years and since her arrival the infection prevention program has grown from two to seven staff members. She has also been integral in purchasing an electronic infection surveillance system, collaborating with other hospitals to decrease MRSA rates, approving funding to study chlorhexidine bathing for surgical intensive care unit patients, and improving hand hygiene compliance rates to more than 90 percent.
“You really do have to do be willing to invest in infection prevention,” Friberg said in a press conference on Friday. “It’s right thing to do for patients, but also the right thing to do for organization. If you focus on infection prevention, so will the staff.”
In addition to significant investments to reduce MRSA and central line-associated bloodstream infections, Friberg was particularly pleased with a hand hygiene program that increased physician compliance more than 30 percent.
Robin Carver RN, BSN, CIC, the director of infection prevention at WakeMed said they achieved this improvement with targeted educational programs, but also through less traditional initiatives.
“We actually dressed up our vice president of quality and patient safety in a frog suit,” Carver said, explaining that their hand hygiene motto was “Friction Rubs Out Germs.”
Carver said they also inoculated cultures with bacteria from physician’s hands to give them an accurate visual of the germs they are carrying around. Lastly, WakeMed enforced a strict disciplinary program. Physicians who were reported for noncompliance were issued a letter of warning from the IP and chair of the medical staff.
Friberg says even the executives have offered suggestions like an initiative to clean computer keyboards and mice so there is less opportunity for physicians to pick up germs.
“What we have seen is real shift in awareness,” Friber said.
This week APIC will also offer a series of free Webinars for infection prevention eduction including hand hygiene compliance, preventing surgical site infections, reducing ventilator associated pneumonia, and specific education for alternate sites of care besides the acute care setting.
OSHA Healthcare Advisor has authored a number of infection prevention posts about MRSA, CMS regulations, hand hygiene, and ongoing updates regarding H1N1 and seasonal influenza. There are also 13 free infection control related downloads on the Tools page.
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