Wearers of medical masks and respirators have same infection rates in healthcare settings: study
By
Alicia Lasek
Jun 24, 2021
The risk of receiving a positive COVID-19 test result was the same among healthcare workers who wore either type of mask, investigators say. In contrast, their non-mask-wearing colleagues had significantly...
Antigen tests just as effective as PCR in preventing COVID outbreaks, NIH study finds
By
Alicia Lasek
Jul 02, 2021
A “highly anticipated” study now shows that both testing approaches can give 98% sensitivity when used at least twice weekly in a screening program.
Early vaccination sped up decline in COVID infections, study in Genesis facilities finds
By
Alicia Lasek
Apr 20, 2021
Nursing homes that administered shots early in the COVID-19 vaccine rollout experienced a lower rate of new infections compared to later-vaccinating sites. The results underscore the efficacy of the drugs...
Untracked COVID: Nursing home workers have died at twice the rate of hospital workers
By
Alicia Lasek
Apr 09, 2021
Nursing home care providers have the sad distinction of accounting for a large proportion of healthcare workers’ COVID deaths, according to new 2020 data that was not tracked by the U.S. government....
CDC to fund LTC infection control strike teams nationwide starting in October
By
Alicia Lasek
Sep 20, 2021
The initiative will allow states and other U.S. jurisdictions to “staff, train and deploy” strike teams to help long-term care operations with known or suspected COVID-19 infections, CDC says.
Safety means ‘seeing the virus’: Atria recounts rollout of 18,000 tests early in pandemic
By
Alicia Lasek
Jun 09, 2021
Finding a way to conduct COVID-19 testing among 31,000 residents and staff members across multiple states helped the senior living giant to “seal out” outbreaks and show that its communities were safe...
Increases in non-COVID infections ‘wipe out’ decade of progress
By
Kimberly Marselas
Sep 03, 2021
The CDC’s new report of a spike in healthcare associated infections is alarming, says the nation’s leading infection control group. One bright spot for nursing homes: CDC found no increase in Clostridium...
APIC urges LTC industry to boost infection control capabilities with full-time, certified staff
By
Alicia Lasek
Mar 09, 2022
With the lessons of the pandemic fresh in mind, now is the time for LTC administrators to commit to recruiting and training dedicated, on-site infection preventionists, experts say. Sources of federal...
New cases of antifungal-resistant yeast infections in nursing homes alarm CDC
By
Alicia Lasek
Jul 26, 2021
For the first time, the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention has identified U.S. nursing home residents and hospital patients with candida auris yeast infections that resist all first-line antifungal...