cover story
cover story
When Fido and Friends Visit : Infection Prevention & Control Risks When Animals Visit Healthcare Settings
By Katherine Lunt , MBA , MPH , CIC , HEM ; and Margaret M . Miller , BS , MT ( ASCP ) M , CIC , FAPIC
During COVID-19 , thousands of animals in shelters found their forever homes . In 2021 , the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals ® ( ASPCA ) released data from a nationally representative poll of 5,000 respondents that confirmed that close to 1 in 5 households acquired a cat or dog since the beginning of COVID-19 . This poll revealed most pet owners include their pets in their daily lives . Now , pets are going everywhere with their owners , like restaurants and grocery stores , and owners are even taking their pets to healthcare facilities , including hospitals , long-term care facilities , and outpatient clinics .
The History of Animals in Healthcare
Animals and pets have been by humans ’ side for thousands of years . The therapeutic potential of animals was first recognized in the late 1800s when Florence Nightingale , who is considered the founder of modern nursing , made substantial discoveries
14 • www . healthcarehygienemagazine . com • august 2024