This report illustrates a common violation of Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards in the healthcare laundry environment, reviews the OSHA inspection process, and provides best practices for staying compliant. It also outlines best practices for handling contaminated healthcare textiles.
Scientists from the Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology (IMCB), a research institute under the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, have uncovered the mechanisms which embryonic stem cells employ to inhibit virus expression. The ground-breaking discovery could potentially advance stem cell therapeutics and diagnostics.
As drug-resistant strains of bacteria and viruses continue to arise, St. Mary’s Health Care System in Athens, Ga. is taking an innovative step to help protect patients from infection: the Athens hospital is the first in Northeast Georgia to use powerful ultraviolet radiation to treat surgical suites, isolation rooms and other areas of the hospital.
With influenza season approaching, health experts at a news conference held at the National Press Club by the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases (NFID) reinforced the need for everyone six months of age and older to get vaccinated with updated 2015-2016 vaccine. Influenza vaccination coverage estimates have steadily increased, particularly over the past five years, and are highest in young children and older adults, who are among those most vulnerable to severe complications from the flu.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a communication to healthcare professionals to share preliminary information regarding infections associated with the use of reprocessed flexible bronchoscopes.
Yale University chemists have created a new process for synthesizing an organic, nitrogen-based compound that inhibits HIV. The process represents a fundamentally different approach to synthesizing alkaloids, which are naturally occurring compounds that contain nitrogen. The new approach uses a set of starting materials that do not require the usual tempering of nitrogen's reactive tendencies.
Scientists wonder why some people get so sick and even die after being infected by the foodborne pathogen E.coli O157:H7, while others experience much milder symptoms and recover relatively quickly. Now Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences researchers believe they have discovered an explanation
Environmental hygiene, at its best, follows a prescribed set of steps in an evidence-based protocol, and guided by best-practice recommendations. Deviate from this protocol, or worse yet, cut corners, and patient outcomes can be jeopardized. As hospitals respond to the call to do more with less, the expediency with which patient rooms are turned over is increasing, leading some experts to sound the alarm about compromising patient safety.