Safe Healthcare Blog

Hosted by CDC’s Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion. If you have questions or comments about healthcare safety topics, please contact CDC-INFO at https://wwwn.cdc.gov/dcs/ContactUs/Form.

HICPAC invites your comments on revised isolation precautions guideline this fall

African American female healthcare worker dons a face mask as she approaches a healthcare facility

CDC’s evidence-based guidelines for health care are designed to protect healthcare workers and patients, encourage safe practices, improve health outcomes, and save lives. They are not regulations, but many regulatory bodies consider this advice when they create the rules that lead to penalties and payments for healthcare facilities. We have learned a lot about how Read More >

Posted on by Mike Bell, MD, and Alex Kallen, MD, MPH55 Comments
Categories Healthcare-associated infections, Infection Control and Prevention, Patient Stories and Patient Safety
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Multi-Dose Vial Safety Reminders for National Immunization Awareness Month

August is National Immunization Awareness Month, an observance to acknowledge the importance of routine vaccination for people of all ages. Project Firstline wants to ensure that all healthcare workers who give vaccines understand the importance of safe injection practices, and that they use multi-dose vaccine vials safely and correctly. A multi-dose vaccine vial is a Read More >

Posted on by Janet Glowicz with assistance from Mia Frederick and Brittney Foster9 Comments
Categories Injection Safety
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Implementing Infection Prevention and Control Measures Reduces CRE in Vietnam

Vietnam has adapted established infection prevention and control (IPC) measures for limited-resource settings to help stop the spread of carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales (CRE), identified as an urgent antimicrobial resistance (AR) threat in CDC’s 2019 AR Threats Report. A CDC-supported initiative at The University Medical Center Ho Chi Minh City (UMC) in Vietnam that used IPC quality Read More >

Posted on by Amber Vasquez, MD, MPH2 Comments
Categories Advancing Global Healthcare Safety, Antibiotic Resistance and Antibiotic Use (Stewardship), Healthcare-associated infections, Infection Control and Prevention
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Five Ways Nursing Staff use Infection Control to Make Health Care Safer

Shay L. Drummond, MPH, RN, CIC, Infection Preventionist/ Janet Glowicz, PhD, RN, Infection Preventionist

May was National Nurses Month, an important observance to acknowledge nurses’ significant impact on health care. Every day, nurses across the country make an invaluable difference in the lives of their patients and the communities they serve. Project Firstline recognizes their ongoing sacrifices and contributions and strives to support nurses by providing the critical infection Read More >

Posted on by Mia Frederick & Brittney Foster8 Comments
Categories Healthcare-associated infections, Infection Control and Prevention
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Eight Ways Health Department Leaders Can Support Effective HAI/AR Programs to Advance Prevention Efforts in their Community

How to Support HAI/AR Programs

State and territorial health agency (S/THA) Healthcare-Associated Infection and Antimicrobial Resistance (HAI/AR) programs play a critical role in spearheading prevention, detection, and outbreak response in their communities. During the COVID-19 pandemic, HAI/AR programs led and supported healthcare infection prevention and control activities to help keep the public safe. Several significant federal investments have been made Read More >

Posted on by Authors: Elizabeth Mothershed, M.S., Deputy Associate Director of State Strategy, DHQP, and Monica Payne M.S., Health Communications Specialist, DHQP, CDC2 Comments
Categories Healthcare-associated infections, Infection Control and Prevention
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