Operating Room

The Leapfrog Group enhances hospital safety by publicizing hand hygiene performance, improving patient safety outcomes, and significantly reducing health care-associated infections through transparent standards and monitoring initiatives.

Perioperative nurses bring vital skills in patient safety, infection control, and quality improvement. They enhance surgical outcomes and support health care systems during complex, high-risk procedures.

Meet the experts shaping infection prevention: Infection Control Today's Editorial Board members share insights, experiences, and cutting-edge strategies to enhance health care safety and quality. Meet Jenny Hayes, MSN, RN, CIC, CAIP, CASSPT.

Postoperative pneumonia (POP) is a common surgical complication that increases hospital stay, costs, and mortality. Oral hygiene before and after surgery can significantly reduce the risk of POP.

Use this handout to explain the basics of why infection prevention and control and antimicrobial stewardship are essential and how the 2 fields must have a unified approach to patient and staff safety

If a patient receives treatment or therapy that they do not need, it can cause unnecessary harm. This is true for medications, surgeries, and medical procedures, especially blood transfusions. 

Infection preventionists focus on patient safety. Reducing CLABSIs requires meticulous care for all vascular access points, not just central lines, to prevent bloodstream infections.

NV-HAP significantly contributes to increased sepsis, mortality, and length of stay, negatively affecting hospital metrics, finances, and patient outcomes, underscoring the importance of targeted prevention strategies.

Sterilizing modern surgical instruments is challenging due to their complexity, increased size, and varied materials. Low-temperature methods are crucial, but overloading and rapid turnarounds heighten sterilization failure risks.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a highly virulent pathogen, poses significant risks to immunocompromised patients, presenting challenges in treatment due to its antibiotic resistance and environmental persistence.

Hospital-associated infections affect over 1 million US patients annually. Proper medical equipment cleaning and sterilization significantly reduce infection risks, improving patient outcomes and safety.

Meet the experts shaping infection prevention: Infection Control Today's Editorial Board members share insights, experiences, and cutting-edge strategies to enhance health care safety and quality. Meet Shannon Simmons, DHSc, MPH, CIC.

A Memorial Healthcare study shows updated C difficile testing guidelines led to a 20% reduction in inappropriate tests, improving diagnostic accuracy and preventing unnecessary treatments.

Surgical instrument errors, often linked to visualization failures during sterile processing, pose significant risks to patient safety and OR efficiency. Advanced technologies, including AI, are essential for reducing these errors and improving overall outcomes in sterile processing departments.

Read this informative article on mitigating central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs) in acute care settings, which is crucial for enhancing patient safety.

Effective implementation of UV-C disinfection is crucial to reducing HAIs. The Providence Holy Cross Medical Center achieved a 19% reduction in multidrug-resistant HAIs and saved $1.2 million through strategic deployment, highlighting the importance of collaboration and innovative management.

Take 5 minutes to catch up on Infection Control Today®’s highlights for the week ending August 17, 2024.

Pneumonia, a leading cause of death from health care-acquired infections, can be prevented through oral care, especially in nonventilator hospital-acquired pneumonia (NV-HAP) cases.

Infection Control Today® speaks with the 2023 Infection Control Today’s Educator of the Year Award™ winner, Sharon Ward-Fore, MS, MT,(ASCP), CIC, FAPIC

Here are the formal rules for the 2024 Winner of the Infection Control Today’s Educator of the Year Award™.

Transplants are a crucial yet complex part of acute care. They involve various organs and tissues, necessitating robust infection prevention programs and compliance with strict regulatory standards.

Take 5 minutes to catch up on Infection Control Today®’s highlights for the week ending July 20, 2024.

In a follow-up to Infection Control Today's (ICT's) article on the CDC's Antimicrobial Resistance Threats in the US 2021-2022 release, Michael Craig, MPP, director of CDC's Antimicrobial Resistance Coordination and Strategy Unit, answers ICT's questions.

The "90’s SwipeSense Club" significantly improved hand hygiene adherence at Novant Health Thomasville Medical Center. By incentivizing adherence through 1990s-themed rewards and using SwipeSense technology to track hygiene practices, the hospital increased adherence rates from 53% in 2021 to 84% by May 2024.

William Shutze, MD, FACS, discusses how infection prevention impacts vascular health, emphasizing key strategies and the role of vascular surgeons in maintaining vascular well-being.

Hebah al Zamel, MSN, CIC, CPHQ, an infection preventionist in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and a member of ICT's Editorial Advisory Board, describes how hand hygiene is handled in Prince Sultan Cardiac Center in Qasim.

Infection Control Today's Product Locator is a monthly column highlighting some of the latest advanced technology in infection prevention.

Infection prevention during childbirth, via vaginal or cesarean delivery, is crucial for maternal and neonatal health. Strategies include strict hygiene, sterile techniques, and antibiotic prophylaxis to reduce postpartum infection risks.

IPs discuss APIC's white paper, which highlights IPs frustrations with outdated and unclear medical device IFUs and the challenges they face.

Systematic review identifies a 3.0% prevalence of surgical site infections in knee surgery patients, with factors like diabetes and tobacco contributing. Tailored interventions are crucial.