COVID-19

“IPs reported more empowerment, credibility and value to their facilities during the pandemic,” states a study unveiled today at the annual APIC conference.

An infection prevention and control department overseeing 28 hospitals created a manual that allowed infection preventions at all levels of experience to function optimally during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Almost half of nursing homes and assisted living facilities are operating at a loss, while 84% of nursing homes are losing revenue this year because fewer post-acute patients are coming to them from hospitals.

Elizabeth Jefferson, PhD, CIC: “You have to really pay attention and make sure that it [Candida auris] stays contained so that you don’t have an outbreak. It just takes one case.”

Infection preventionists and hospital administrators need to continue pushing for better hand hygiene compliance once health care workers stop worrying as much about their own safety, a study states.

In the midst of a COVID-19 surge, a hospital was able to limit the spread of Candida auris to the initially infected patient.

Holly Taylor, MPH, CIC: Using retired IPs can “create a little bit more bandwidth within the department when you have potentially prolonged vacancies because we do know that IP staffing vacancies last longer than other health care vacancies.”

Karen Jones MPH, RN, CIC: “It’s really key to have a good written infection prevention and control plan at the hospital level but then also at the nursing home level. And what keeps that up to date? It’s an infection preventionist who’s knowledgeable, who’s been educated, who’s been trained, who’s certified.”

A five-year survey in Michigan seeks to determine if enhanced relationships between nursing homes and hospitals might facilitate better infection prevention in nursing homes.

Barbara Smith, RN, BSN, MPA, CIC: “I think that we need to do a little bit more with the public in terms of antibiotic use in the community. So that they’re not at risk for C. diff for whatever reason later in their life.”

The infection prevention department at Ascension Texas managed to shore up IP ranks by calling a couple of IPs out of retirement and asking another if she would postpone her retirement during a COVID-19 surge.

The rates of Clostridioides difficile remained about the same in March, April, May of 2020 as they were during the same 3 months in 2019, according to the study.

Over 2 million people in England may be suffering from long COVID. That’s almost 4% of England’s population; 4% of the U.S. population would be over 13 million people.

Take 5 minutes to catch up on Infection Control Today®’s highlights for the week ending June 25.

Marc L. Boom, MD, Houston Methodist Hospital’s CEO and president, took an unequivocal stand in mandating that employees get vaccinated and it’s a stand that not only other health care institutions—but all companies in every industry—might also possibly take thanks to guidance on the matter by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

We may never know what triggered the global pandemic that has claimed more than 3.8 million lives…. What we do know for certain is that the incredible strength and collaboration of the scientific community have allowed us to regain some semblance of normalcy.

A multiplex PCR assay may be capable of simultaneously detecting and differentiating influenza viruses, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and SARS-CoV-2.

I want to acknowledge [infection preventionists]. You all inspire me daily and I’m eternally grateful to work among you. We work to protect our health care personnel and patients fiercely and often to the point where we are burned out.

Here's one method of containing COVID-19 at nursing homes: Pair long-term care facilities (LTCF) staff and residents who've recovered with susceptible residents to help reduce transmission. It seems to work, says a study.

Far too few have been fully vaccinated in the U.S.to ward off a run on our hospitals, and avoiding hospitalizations is an extremely low bar for public health, since 10% to 30% of the patients even with mild to moderate disease will develop long COVID.

An integrated air management system requires proper engineering and not a pile-up approach of unproven products. One concern is that decision makers will fall into the nearsighted trap of selecting piecemeal products that require frequent maintenance.

Take 5 minutes to catch up on Infection Control Today®’s highlights for the week ending June 18.

The threat of novel variants that are more transmissible is deeply worrisome as we work to vaccinate the world.

The first official case may have been recorded January 20, 2020, but recent evidence suggests that COVID came home for the holidays in the U.S. in mid-December of that year.

Paul Sax, MD: “It’s almost inevitable that even though we’re at very low infection rates right now that that's going to increase when the season changes, again, in the fall and winter. Coronaviruses are seasonal.”