Insights on Infection Control : Safety

Flu Vaccines for Healthcare Providers: Let Your Voice Be Heard

Barbara Smith — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 14:53:00 GMT

The National Vaccine Advisory Committee established a Health Care Personnel Influenza Vaccination Subgroup to help achieve the national goal of 90 percent influenza immunization among healthcare providers by the year 2020. And they want to hear from you...(read more)

Nurses Making a Difference

Barbara Smith — Thu, 06 May 2010 19:42:00 GMT

Some days we feel like we accomplished something if none of our patients fall or no one had a serious reaction to their immunization - in short, there were no adverse patient events on your shift. But since an infection may take a few days to develop,...(read more)

Thirsty? Stay Away From the Soda Fountain

Susan Dubay, MPA, BSN, RN — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 14:41:00 GMT

I have always advocated against fast food - but now I think my case just got stronger. Not only do we have to worry about the health risks of a Big Mac, but we have to worry about the soda (or any fountain beverage) we wash it down with. A team of microbiologists...(read more)

Increased Security, Restricted Electronics Use, and Now H1N1

Susan Dubay, MPA, BSN, RN — Tue, 19 Jan 2010 13:17:00 GMT

Scientists already know that smallpox, measles, tuberculosis, seasonal influenza and SARS can be transmitted during commercial flights. Now, in the first study to predict the number of H1N1 flu infections that could occur during a flight, UCLA researchers...(read more)

H1N1: Is Information Help or Hype

Susan Dubay, MPA, BSN, RN — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 21:39:00 GMT

Over the past several months we have seen the H1N1 virus spread rapidly around the world. Thousands have been infected and many have died. But how much of a real threat is the H1N1 virus compared to the seasonal flu virus? I ran across this info graphic...(read more)

Hospital Nurses Reveal Infection Control Risk to Consumer Reports

Susan Dubay, MPA, BSN, RN — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 13:52:00 GMT

While running on my treadmill after work, an interesting headline appeared on the local news channel: "Hospital nurses reveal risk of cleanliness, Consumer Reports investigates ." I was shocked to discover that 28 percent of nurses said they had seen...(read more)

Happy International Infection Prevention Week!

Susan Dubay, MPA, BSN, RN — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 12:19:00 GMT

In attempt to increase awareness on infection prevention and call attention to the need to protect patients and the public from the risk of healthcare-associated infections, the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC),...(read more)

Stimulus Money for Infection Control & Prevention

Susan Dubay, MPA, BSN, RN — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 17:43:00 GMT

Through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, healthcare facilities should be able to ramp up their infection control programs.According to the American Medical Association's website, the "Prevention and Wellness" section of the healthcare...(read more)

Disposables as H1N1 Pandemic Prevention

Susan Dubay, MPA, BSN, RN — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 22:49:00 GMT

A recent WebMD article addressing the flu pandemic said, "H1N1 swine flu is spreading faster and wider in the U.S. That's worrisome -- but more and more, health officials are fretting about what might happen the fall." In lieu of the growing concern around...(read more)

Dangerous Uniforms Part 2

Susan Dubay, MPA, BSN, RN — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 12:04:00 GMT

In response to my last posting about uniforms and infection control, Lorettajo Kapinos, an ER RN from Springfield, MA, asked a good question about cleanliness of uniforms and timeframes. "I'd especially like to know if it's safe for 4 hours, 8 hours,...(read more)

H1N1: Is It a Crisis or Is Staffing the Real Crisis?

Susan Dubay, MPA, BSN, RN — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 12:08:00 GMT

I recently returned from the APIC conference, where topics on the agenda ranged from H1NI, to Model Infection Prevention System of the Future. Most infection preventionists at the meeting felt they knew how to address the challenges of this new pandemic...(read more)

Improper Cleaning of Devices at the VA Leads to Major Repercussions

Susan Dubay, MPA, BSN, RN — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 14:03:00 GMT

There's been some interesting dialog in the news lately about the problems the VA had this week with the improper cleaning of colonoscopes and the major repercussions. How many of you have been surprised (or not) by what's happened and the resulting media...(read more)

The Latest for Infection Control Professionals

Susan Dubay, MPA, BSN, RN — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 19:43:00 GMT

I am attending the annual Association for Professionals in Infection Control (APIC) in Ft. Lauderdale this week. There will be significant information on the latest topics in infection prevention from leading experts on pandemics, of course, including...(read more)

Preventing the Spread of Swine Flu

Susan Dubay, MPA, BSN, RN — Mon, 18 May 2009 14:15:00 GMT

Thank you again, to those who read my last posting about handwashing and the importance of this simple, yet critical practice both for healthcare practitioners and the public in general. It is especially relevant today with the latest outbreak of H1N1...(read more)

Hand Hygiene

Susan Dubay, MPA, BSN, RN — Mon, 13 Apr 2009 13:46:00 GMT

Thank you to those who read my last posting about using disposable medical devices as an infection prevention method. I was interested to see the posting that you "try to clean stethoscopes between patients." There are numerous clinical studies that link...(read more)