CMS test protocol misses too many asymptomatic workers: statewide COVID study
By
Alicia Lasek
Nov 04, 2020
If the goal is to identify all asymptomatic nursing home staff, comprehensive repeat testing may be needed regardless of COVID positivity rates in the community, investigators told McKnight’s.
The COVID-19 mitigation strategies of social distancing, face coverings and handwashing not only will help to curb the spread of the coronavirus, they will help to lessen the severity of the upcoming flu...
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...
Brookdale’s ‘massive’ flu vaccination push includes employees’ family members
By
Alicia Lasek
Sep 29, 2020
The organization is now offering onsite, scheduled flu vaccination clinics run by Omnicare in all of its communities, home health agencies and corporate offices. Associates’ family members will be able...
Vaccinations tied to drop in nursing home infections; states want greater role in pharmacy allocations
By
Alicia Lasek
Feb 17, 2021
Nursing homes experienced a 48% decline in new resident cases three weeks after their first onsite vaccine clinic. That’s compared with a 21% decline among unvaccinated nursing homes located in the...
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...
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...
Are we there yet? Vaccination success won’t ease need for LTC vigilance, observers say
By
Alicia Lasek
Feb 18, 2021
The need for stepped-up infection control measures likely will remain a necessity for the foreseeable future, say industry observers and stakeholders.
‘Exceedingly difficult’ to control COVID inside facilities when virus rages outside, LTC experts...
By
Alicia Lasek
Sep 22, 2021
Long-term care operators located in areas of high COVID-19 prevalence are hamstrung when it comes to keeping SARS-CoV-2 infections from infiltrating their facilities, the country’s top long-term care...