______________________________ Infection Control for New York Health Care Professionals ‒ 2024 Update
INTRODUCTION In 2012, the New York State Department of Health developed the following statements to promote the health and safety of all. These remain unchanged in the latest (2019) update [1]. • Mission: We protect, improve and promote the health, productivity, and well-being of all New Yorkers. • Vision: New Yorkers will be the healthiest people in the world, living in communities that promote health, pro- tected from health threats, and having access to quality, evidence based, cost-effective health services. • Values: Dedication to the Public Good, Innovation, Excellence, Integrity, Teamwork, and Efficiency. As New York State, and the world, face mutating strains of coronavirus, controlling the spread of emergent diseases is a priority for the New York Department of Health. New York healthcare professionals must be increasingly vigilant and prepared to face the threat of infectious agents and antibiotic- resistant organisms. New York is especially vulnerable as a key entry point to the U.S. for travelers from throughout the world. Preventing healthcare-associated infections (HAI) is essential to protect the lives of patients, staff, and the community. HAI are defined in a 2023 article published by the National Institute of Health [2]. Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) are nosoco- mially* acquired infections that are not present or incubating at the time of admission to a hospital. These infections include catheter-associated urinary tract infections, central line-associated bloodstream infections, surgical site infections, ventilator-associ- ated pneumonia, hospital-acquired pneumonia, and Clostridium difficile infections. *Nosocomially simply means occurring in or associated with a hospital or healthcare setting. The requirements and protocols for infection control in the state of New York continue to evolve. This course is intended to explore current education, training, research, policy, and workplace best practice to address emerging pathogens. The CDC Considerations for Enhanced Barrier Precautions (EBP) in Skilled Nursing Facilities, Hospital Sepsis Program Core Ele- ments: 2023 , and CDC Core Infection Prevention and Control Practices for Safe Healthcare Delivery in All Settings are examples of updates to best practice in healthcare [3; 4; 5].
IMPLICIT BIAS IN HEALTHCARE Implicit bias relates to attitudes, stereotypes, and beliefs about race, gender, ability, ethnicity, national origin, or other char- acteristics that may contradict our conscious beliefs. These individual biases may be outside of our awareness yet influence judgement and actions leading to discrimination and negative influences on patient care. Education and training are necessary for bias recognition and self-awareness to provide quality healthcare for all patients. Bias can affect access, communication, interaction, screening, diag- nosis, and treatment, increasing health disparities and nega- tive patient outcomes. Interprofessional collaboration among healthcare organizations, clinicians, and educators is required to eliminate implicit bias for best practice in healthcare. NEW YORK STATE HEALTHCARE- ASSOCIATED INFECTION PREVALENCE STATISTICS HOSPITAL-ACQUIRED INFECTIONS IN NEW YORK STATE, 2019 PART 2: TECHNICAL REPORT The rate of infections acquired by patients while in New York hospitals was last reported in the Hospital-Acquired Infections in New York State, 2019 Part 2: Technical Report published May 2021. The 13th annual report by the NYSDOH includes data through 2020 about the seven most common HAI [6]. They are the following: • Surgical site infections (SSIs) following colon, coronary artery bypass graft, hip replacement, spinal fusion, and hysterectomy procedures • Central line–associated blood stream infections (CLAB- SIs) • Catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI) • Clostridioides difficile ( C. difficile ; CDI) • Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae infections (CREs) • Candida auris ( C. auris ) • Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) bloodstream infections (BSIs) The NYSDOH report published in 2021 shows improvement in HAI rates in 167 New York hospitals from 2015 to 2019 (these are the most recent data). This summary lists only the goals projected for decreasing HAI rates and the actual decrease in HAI rates in 2019.
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