Category: Infection Control

CDC urges improved donor screening after 2nd bone allograft TB outbreak

The CDC is calling for improved donor screening and culture-based testing of donor organs and tissues after the second outbreak of tuberculosis in transplant cases.

New tool supports hospitals in determining infection control staffing

The Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology has launched a staffing calculator tool to support infection prevention and control leaders in making decisions around staffing and resource allocation. 

Sepsis prevention requires accountable leadership, hospitals say

Northwell Health, Henry Ford Health and Corewell Health are making strides in reducing sepsis deaths through one key factor: accountability. 

How Northwell Health cut sepsis rates in half

New Hyde Park, N.Y.-based Northwell Health has cut its sepsis infection rates in half amid mounting pressures from the Biden administration for U.S. hospitals to do more to reduce sepsis deaths — which account for about 270,000 deaths annually.

C. auris may contaminate environments rapidly, even after disinfection: Study

When patients are colonized with Candida auris, contamination of their surrounding environments can happen within just a few hours, according to the results of a new study. 

Hospital masking picks up steam

More health systems have implemented mask rules in recent weeks amid an uptick in respiratory virus activity and growing concerns over potential capacity issues this winter.

Brushing teeth daily linked to lower risk of hospital-acquired pneumonia

The simple act of tooth brushing at least once per day can lower a patient’s risk of getting infected with hospital-acquired pneumonia, according to a study published Dec. 18 in JAMA.

7 advancements in C. diff care in 2023

As antibiotic resistance grows, so does research toward preventing and treating Clostridioides difficile, a bacterium known to be one of the leading causes of healthcare-associated infections in U.S. patients that can sometimes turn fatal. Often, infec…

Contaminated beds linked to C. diff risks: Study

Patients staying in a hospital bed previously occupied by a patient with a Clostridium difficile infection have a higher risk of contracting one themselves, according to new research published Dec. 13 in Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology. 

CDC's upcoming mask rule can worsen protection flaws, critics say

Before a CDC advisory committee votes whether to update its 13-year-old infection control rules in healthcare settings, critics of the guidance’s draft say the proposal is confusing and too lenient, KFF Health News reported Dec. 14.