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The New Need for Infection Preventionists

Is your community meeting the new CDC guidelines when it comes to infection prevention requirements? As COVID-19 cases increase (amidst concerns of a second spike in incidence rates), the CDC released guideline updates for healthcare professionals. As of June 25, 2020:

  • Facilities with greater than 100 residents must have a full-time Infection Preventionist with the proper training.
  • Facilities with less than 100 residents may/may not require an Infection Preventionist based on the acuity and needs of the resident’s population as determined by completing a Facility Infection Risk Assessment.

Infection Preventionists have quickly become key members of the interdisciplinary team and are responsible for critically important initiatives that will ultimately enable skilled nursing centers and senior living communities to safely care for our nation’s precious seniors. These registered nurses possess a unique expertise in policies and practice related to pathogen transmission and antibiotic tracking and are specially trained to identify and monitor areas of infection and high risk. They are responsible for keeping abreast of and providing on-going updates and education related to COVID-19 and infection control related policies (such as hand hygiene, isolation precautions, proper PPE usage, etc.). Infection Preventionists are also responsible for ensuring all healthcare providers within your facility wear masks and recommending that residents also wear a face mask when leaving their room, receiving treatment, or leave the facility.

Importantly, Infection Preventionists are also responsible for designing/maintaining a system – customized to each facility – to track/report prevention process measures and monitor active infections/incidence related specific to:

  • Resident impact and facility capacity
  • Staff and personnel impact
  • Supplies and personal protective equipment
  • Ventilator capacity and supplies

Does your facility need additional support to comply with CDC infection control guidelines? Would your IDT benefit from robust infection prevention support? Access resources available via the CDC website and/or contact HealthPRO Heritage who can offer:

Tags: COVID-19, infection prevention