Weekly Rounds: What's Lurking Within Hospital Mattresses, COVID-19 Jabs for Kids, and More

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.

1. Hospital Mattress Failure Is a Potential Threat to Patient Safety
Damaged mattresses are common in hospitals and can potentially place patients at increased risk for infection. These are the findings of a study recently published in Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology.

2. Calculating Return-to-Work COVID-19 Policies Is a Balancing Act for Hospitals
Investigators with the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center wanted to see just what the effects of shortened quarantines might be. They concluded that HCPs can safely return to work after 7 days of quarantine if they test negative for COVID-19 on days 5 to 7.

3. Bug of the Month: Trust Me, I Pose No Threat to You at All
You’ve got nothing to worry about when it comes to me. Pay me no mind. As the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes, I very rarely infect people in the United States. Can you get to the bottom of who I am?

4. Pfizer-BioNTech Delay FDA Request for COVID-19 Vaccine for Kids Under 5
The US Food and Drug Administration announced last week that an advisory committee meeting to discuss Pfizer and BioNTech's emergency use authorization request for its COVID-19 vaccine for children 6 months through 4 years of age would be postponed after the companies cited new data.

5. Infection Preventionist Role Needs to Be Spotlighted
Lisa Waldowski, DNP, RN, CIC, of Kaiser Permanente: “There will always be a role for infection preventionists. I don’t worry about job security, so to speak. There are so many elements within infection prevention and control.