Infection prevention begins with fundamentals, and there is nothing more fundamental than hand hygiene. However, there is a lot of confusion in the industry regarding the placement of alcohol-based hand...
MDROs setting up residence: The role of the contaminated environment in long-term care
By
Debra A. Hagberg
Aug 18, 2022
America’s age 65 and older population is expected to nearly double in size in the coming decades, from 49 million in 2016 to 95 million in 2060. With this aging of the population comes the reality of...
Questions on monkeypox in LTC? This doc has answers.
Aug 11, 2022
Monkeypox “will likely spread beyond the demographic in which it is currently most concentrated, and facilities need to be prepared to handle exposed or even infected patients,” an expert tells...
CMS releases updated Phase 3 guidance
By
Danielle Brown
Jun 29, 2022
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services on Wednesday released updated guidance for nursing home surveyors as part of the Phase 2 and 3 Requirements of Participation.
White House pivots to air quality focus for COVID-19 infection control
By
Alicia Lasek
Mar 28, 2022
The White House has embraced a model of COVID-19 transmission that could help shift infection prevention efforts toward indoor air quality and industrial hygiene. A related public webinar is set for Tuesday,...
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...
Nearly all high-touch surfaces in LTC are contaminated, study finds
By
Amy Novotney
Feb 18, 2022
More than 90% of “high-touch” surfaces in long-term care facilities, including handrails and equipment controls, are contaminated with fecal matter and other potential sources of infectious...
Pandemic has eroded patient safety gains, researchers argue
By
Amy Novotney
Feb 17, 2022
The COVID-19 pandemic significantly degraded the strides made over the last two decades in improving patient safety, particularly in long-term care, according to CMS and the CDC. In response, APIC has...
Lessons from COVID-19: Prioritize infection prevention and control for PALTC
By
Christopher Laxton
Patrick Luib
Theresa Schmidt
Jan 12, 2022
Series Introduction The Advancing Excellence in Long-Term Care Collaborative is a community of diverse collaborators who experienced the pandemic differently and from different perspectives. We have shared...
Omicron renders Pfizer vaccine less effective; variant surge to hit U.S. by January
By
Alicia Lasek
Dec 15, 2021
The vaccine is less able to prevent infection, but retains 70% protection against hospitalization, a new study shows. The news comes as federal health officials warn that omicron is spreading rapidly in...