Announcing the latest CE course , “ Effortless Vigilance : Simplifying Environment of Care Rounds For Infection Preventionists ”
Reducing variability may be achieved by aligning with The International Organization for Standardization ( ISO ). ISO is a non-governmental agency that relies on the expertise of members from around the world to develop and provide consensus on standards for management , technology and manufacturing . The standards provide structure and rigor , and stakeholders are explicitly challenged in the process of standard development to play a role in the outcome .”
promote portability if asked for a printed copy . Additionally , collaboration of all stakeholders is preferred to rate the risk assessment however subjectivity and potential bias is introduced during this process . Staff in an intensive care unit will most likely assign a higher number based on the patient population and their potential critical nature .
While this may be correct it does imply that every time a risk assessment is reviewed by the manager or the IP , the rating will always be higher in an intensive care unit ( ICU ) than on a medical surgical unit . The ICU may have made significant progress on healthcare-associated infection ( HAI ) prevention initiatives like catheter-associated urinary tract infections ( CAUTIs ); however , they will always have a higher numerical rating . The higher rating may or may not be necessary as the mandated reporting of certain HAI ’ s will take precedence over any rating possibly due to the lack of a standard . The prioritization of the risks is the last step and is a somewhat random process as the facility can decide to select the top 5 , 10 or even 15 highest-rated risks .
In conclusion , the facility risk assessment , while necessary and required , lacks standardization . Infection preventionists work tirelessly to implement guidelines , follow instructions for use ( IFU ) and design processes around regulatory requirements and best practice . However , when it is time to do the annual risk assessment the lack of a standard rating process and prioritization schema can lead to unnecessary variability and potentially overinflated or underinflated priorities .
Linda Goss , DNP , BS , APRN , ANP-BC , COHN-S , CIC , FAPIC , is a certified infection preventionist and adult nurse practitioner . She has 30-plus years of experience in healthcare with 24 in infection prevention and control . She began consulting in 2019 and has provided interim services for a variety of healthcare organizations ranging from acute-care to pediatric . Additionally , she has been active in her professional organizations including the Certification Board for Infection Control and Epidemiology ( CBIC ), During her term on the board of directors , she was directly involved in developing the a-IPC certification and IPU process . She holds a doctorate in nursing practice and a bachelor of science in information systems .
Mystified by EOC Rounding in the Hospital ?
Announcing the latest CE course , “ Effortless Vigilance : Simplifying Environment of Care Rounds For Infection Preventionists ”
This self-paced activity is presented in a fun and engaging online format . Earn 1 contact hour of nursing continuing education plus receive helpful hand-outs !
Awards 1 IPU for the Environment of Care domain
Presented by Missy Travis ,
MSN , RN , CIC , FAPIC