Weekly Rounds: How Much Threat Is Monkeypox Really, Biosafety Measures, and more
Take 5 minutes to catch up on Infection Control Today’s highlights for the week ending June 10.
Here are 5 highlights from ICT®’s wide-ranging coverage of the infection prevention and control world. Everything from interviews with known opinion leaders, to the news that infection preventionists and other health care professionals can use on their jobs.
Monkeypox: CDC Raises Travel Alert, But How Much Threat Is it Really?
With more confirmed cases in the United States, and the CDC raising the travel alert to Level 2, should individuals be concerned? ICT investigates.
Testing Should Be Appropriate Not Excessive
Biosafety risks for patients with SARS-CoV-2 may be overlooked, and some control measures may bring about cross-contamination of the tests being done and cause biosafety accidents.
Pilot Survey on Environmental Hygiene Contains Startling Results
Over 50 health care facilities from 35 countries participated from both higher and lower income settings.
RSV Requires Global Prevention Strategy Across all Income Levels
Respiratory syncytial virus does have a vaccine; however, the cost limits the distribution to the highest income countries, and a more cost-effective preventative strategy is needed.
Did Stethoscope Hygiene Improve Before and After COVID-19?
Despite the emphasis on more improved infection prevention practices, stethoscope hygiene continually falls short, possibly leading to more health care-acquired infections.
How Contaminated Is Your Stretcher? The Hidden Risks on Hospital Wheels
July 3rd 2025Despite routine disinfection, hospital surfaces, such as stretchers, remain reservoirs for harmful microbes, according to several recent studies. From high-touch areas to damaged mattresses and the effectiveness of antimicrobial coatings, researchers continue to uncover persistent risks in environmental hygiene, highlighting the critical need for innovative, continuous disinfection strategies in health care settings.
Beyond the Surface: Rethinking Environmental Hygiene Validation at Exchange25
June 30th 2025Environmental hygiene is about more than just shiny surfaces. At Exchange25, infection prevention experts urged the field to look deeper, rethink blame, and validate cleaning efforts across the entire care environment, not just EVS tasks.
A Controversial Reboot: New Vaccine Panel Faces Scrutiny, Support, and Sharp Divides
June 26th 2025As the newly appointed Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) met for the first time under sweeping changes by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr, the national spotlight turned to the panel’s legitimacy, vaccine guidance, and whether science or ideology would steer public health policy in a polarized era.
