Mandatory Hospital Sepsis Protocols Save Thousands of Lives
Sepsis develops in response to infection, and it can lead to tissue damage, organ failure, and death. Sepsis is the leading cause of in-hospital death in the United States. More than 1.7 million Americans are diagnosed with sepsis annually.
Six Strategies to Strengthen Post-COVID Infection Prevention
Many groups are laying out strategies for better mitigating disease transmission in future pandemics, ranging from the White House’s National COVID Preparedness Plan to the Rockefeller Foundation’s Roadmap for Living With COVID. Meanwhile, Dr. Tom Talbot, chief hospital epidemiologist at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, encourages health systems to implement practices for securing more inclusive feedback, standardizing simple practices, and gauging success.
Hand Hygiene: What to Consider When Increasing Compliance
While protecting the health and well-being of patients and staff is the top priority for healthcare facilities, it can also be a significant challenge. Even though hospitals use protective measures to reduce the transmission of germs, HAIs and COVID-19 continue to threaten facility occupants.
Infection Prevention Preparedness: Where We Go From Here
As we, and the healthcare industry, continue to work our way toward a post-pandemic world, the lessons learned from COVID-19 remain stark and the calls to rebuild a resilient patient safety culture are loud and clear. Organizations such as the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America, the CDC, and CMS are highlighting challenges, including staffing shortages and burnout, that must be addressed to better prepare for future prevention of healthcare-associated infections.
AAMI Announces Newly Updated Standard on Endoscope Cleaning
The Association for the Advancement of Medical Instrumentation (AAMI) just announced the release of an updated version of ANSI/AAMI ST91:2021 Flexible and semi-rigid endoscope processing in health care facilities. The last version of the standard formulated by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and AAMI was released in 2015.
Antibiotics Market ‘Fragile and Failing,’ Report Says
There is an ongoing struggle between antibiotic resistant infections—superbugs such as Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus—and the makers of antibiotics. The global death toll is alarming, with more than 1.2 million people dying annually, and estimated mortality expected to reach 10 million people annually by 2050.
Opioid Use Disorder Plays Significant Role in Many Sepsis Cases
Sepsis develops in response to infection, and can lead to tissue damage, organ failure, and death. Sepsis is the leading cause of in-hospital death in the United States. More than 1.7 million Americans are diagnosed with sepsis annually.
International Infection Prevention Week Resources From PSQH
As International Infection Prevention Week wraps up, we want to thank infection preventionists for all the hard work they do every day. Thanks to our partners GOJO, the makers of Purell, and RLDatix this week for their support.
PSQH Quick Poll 2021: Taking the Pulse of Infection Prevention Efforts
As part of PSQH’s celebration of International Infection Prevention Week, we decided to reach out to our readers with a few questions to find out the state of infection prevention efforts. The Quick Poll had a total of 244 respondents.
Infection Prevention and Control is a Team Sport
Knowing the staggering impact increased HAIs can have on health systems only further emphasizes how critical it is for Risk Management teams to leverage the expertise and knowledge of Infection Prevention and Control (IPAC) and Antimicrobial Stewardship teams to understand and mitigate HAIs in their care populations.