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Human Prion Disease Infection Control Key Points
The Healthcare Associated Infections program at Washington State Department of Health would like to distribute resources related to human prion disease and key infection control points. Though a rare condition, some aspects related to infection control with this condition can be challenging and our hope is that distribution of these resources can serve as a reminder to assist in the important work you do.
Please don’t hesitate to reach out to our team should you have any questions or concerns. Hospitals should report suspect human prion cases to their LHJ.
Long-Term Care (LTC) Award Enrollment and Reporting Now Open for 2023-2024!
Now is the time to apply for recognition with the new LTC Respiratory Immunization Award. This is an annual LTC provider recognition award that combines health care worker COVID-19 and flu vaccine administration rates into one LTC award program. This award was formerly the COVID-19 Long-Term Care (LTC) Vaccine Champion Award and has now been replaced with this retooled annual award package for LTC staff.
The award is open to LTC providers from all levels of care. You can enroll and report any time through June 3, 2024. The data reporting period is from May 1, 2023 to April 30, 2024.
Environmental Services Infection Prevention & Control: Train the Trainer series
Sign up now! This training is ideal for LTC Educators, LTC IPs, and EVS Leads. See our flyer for more information!
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Infection Prevention and Control |
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See the IPC Quarterly Metrics Snapshot!
 Infection Control Assessment and Response (ICAR) Consultations for Oncology Facilities
The DOH Infection Prevention team will provide you with a fresh perspective on your infection prevention and control plan. They will provide you with the most current guidelines and share tips and tricks they have learned by visiting other facilities that may improve your plan. More details available!
Schedule your next ICAR!
Visit our website to schedule your next Infection Prevention and Control support service through our ICAR button!
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Antimicrobial Stewardship |
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Resources for All Antimicrobial Stewards
New Publication! Urine Polymerase Chain Reaction Tests: Stewardship Helper or Hinderance?
The Washington State Department of Health’s Antimicrobial Stewardship Team is pleased to announce the publication of our article titled “Urine Polymerase Chain Reaction Tests: Stewardship Helper or Hinderance?” in the Antimicrobial Stewardship & Healthcare Epidemiology journal. Urine polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a laboratory test promoted to healthcare professionals working in long-term care facilities as a rapid diagnostic platform for urinary tract infections. We review the currently available literature to determine the implications for antibiotic stewardship programs and provide recommendations for long-term care facilities.
New from WA DOH: The 2023 Annual Antimicrobial Stewardship Report
This inaugural annual report provides an overview of the efforts undertaken during 2023 by this team and shares results of several data analyses. Read the report here.
Antimicrobial Stewardship Certificate Program Scholarship
Society of Infectious Diseases Pharmacists (SIDP) is offering scholarships to complete their Antimicrobial Stewardship Certificate Program at no-cost. This opportunity is open to nurses, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, microbiologists, laboratory scientists, or physicians who identify as an underrepresented minority, and who live and practice in the U.S. To learn more about this opportunity, visit Antimicrobial Stewardship Certificate or email us with any questions.
Acute Care Stewardship Resources
Save the Date: Andre Gouws Memorial Lecture: Antibiotic Myths for Infectious Diseases
Hosted by the University of Washington’s Centers for Stewardship in Medicine and intended for anyone interested in learning about antibiotics, this online lecture will be given by Erin McCreary, PharmD from the University of Pittsburgh. The full lecture will be given at 7am on May 14th, with an abbreviated lecture with Q & A offered at 12pm.
Register by May 10th to get the Zoom link!
New from CDC: Priorities for Hospital Core Element Implementation
To continue enhancing hospital antibiotic stewardship programs, CDC has released Priorities for Hospital Core Element Implementation (Priorities) in 2022 to help enhance the quality and impact of existing antibiotic stewardship programs. Learn more!.
Long-Term Care Stewardship Resources
Urine PCR Guidance Document for Long-Term Care Facilities
Urine polymerase chain reaction-based (PCR) laboratory testing has been promoted to clinicians as an alternative method of obtaining urine cultures. Due to the high prevalence and overuse of antibiotics for asymptomatic bacteriuria (ASB) in the post-acute and long-term care population, a guidance document on the topic of PCR urine testing is provided to ensure safety.
Outpatient Stewardship Resources
Recruitment for Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) Safety Program for Telemedicine: Improving Antibiotic Use Now Open
This program, beginning in June 2024, consists of brief educational presentations about best practices to optimize antibiotic prescribing in the telemedicine environment. Participants will have access to technical assistance, coaching, webinars, and practical tools to implement improvements in their practice. Continuing education units, continuing medical education credits, and ABIM MOC points will be offered at no charge for participants.
Learn more and apply!
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SNF Barriers to Staff Uptake of the 2023-2024 COVID-19 Vaccine
By request of CDC Healthcare-Associated Infections & Antimicrobial Resistance (HAI/AR) branch, the HAI Epidemiology team sent a survey to 196 skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) in January to better understand uptake of the 2023-2024 COVID-19 vaccine in SNFs. The goals were to identify barriers with vaccination and reporting to the National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN), provide resources to increase vaccination uptake, and gather success stories to be shared back with CDC. The responses to questions regarding staff vaccination are summarized below. This follows an analysis of SNF Barriers to Resident Uptake, which was shared in the March newsletter.
Percentage of respondents reporting barriers/challenges to getting staff vaccinated
 The HAI Epidemiology team received 121 responses from 114 facilities across 23 counties. 83 of the respondents (69%) reported challenges or barriers to getting staff vaccinated.
Identified barriers for staff vaccination among respondents reporting staff vaccination challenges
 The 83 respondents that reported challenges were asked follow-up questions to share the specific barriers at their facility. The main barriers they identified for staff vaccination were staff hesitancy/vaccine fatigue and insurance issues (95% and 22% of the respondents reporting challenges respectively).
Percentage of respondents reporting difficulty accessing vaccines
 All SNFs were asked if they were having difficulty accessing vaccine. Vaccine access for residents was not identified as a large problem for SNFs with only 7% of 121 respondents reporting difficulty.
Ongoing Work
In response to this survey, HAI staff will continue to meet with internal partners to identify interventions to address these barriers and will look to gather additional feedback from these SNFS. This work has already identified successful strategies for SNFs to implement, including having a medical director following up with hesitant residents or guardians, vaccinating at admission (or at hire for staff), and vaccinating in batches.
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Quick Infection Prevention Education and Training
Need help with infection prevention training at your healthcare workplace? How about continuing education credits? Check out the Project Firstline education and training opportunities for infection prevention training on your schedule, at your own pace! This six module training series on basic IPC practices takes about 20-minutes per module. Complete all six to receive two contact hours of continuing education credits for free! Start today!
Congrats to our new IP Champions!
Infection Prevention (IP) Champions is a year-long program building IP competency for new professionals to the HAI/AR and IP field. These Champions completed this rigorous program in addition to their normal job duties. This is a huge feat as a lot can happen in a year!
Congratulations to our 2023-2024 IP Champions!
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Amy Heitstuman
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Delanie Hannah
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Katie Williams
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Anna Scarlett
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Elle Cooper
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Laura Schwarz
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Anne Hamilton
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Guadalupe Perez
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Melissa McClaran
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Carolyn Otakan
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Jodi Ferguson
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Ravneet Kaur
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Chanthou Lach
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Julie Loughran
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Shawna Rivera
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Chatty O'Keeffe
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Katelyn Carter
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Venus Smith
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Extended congratulations to the following as they earned their CIC during this program: Amy Heitstuman (January 2024), Anna Scarlett (August 2023), Anne Hamilton (March 2024), Julie Loughran (August 2023), and Melissa McClaran (November 2023). We wish the best of luck to the IP Champions who are studying to sit for the CIC in the near future.
If you are interested in this program, we are starting our fourth cohort in September. Applications open June 10th. Find out more!
Training Programs- Become A Frontline Infection Prevention Champion!
The WA DOH is providing the Frontline IP Champion opportunity to facilities AND training programs! When a healthcare provider training program or healthcare facility implements the Project Firstline online IP Training Modules and other Project Firstline education and training materials into their curriculum or training, they will be featured on our website and receive a certificate.
Check out the training programs who have implemented the Project Firstline modules and resources on our website!
Involve your facility or training program today!
Go to our website for more WA Project Firstline information and resources!
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N95 Respirator Use Consultation Support
Do you have questions about using the N95 or the rules and regulations about it? Join us to get your answers!
Visit our website for more information or send us an email!
NOTE: The Occupational Health Team consultation support will change starting August 1, 2024.
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National Healthcare and Safety Network (NHSN) |
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Bimonthly NHSN User Group for Hospitals
Join us for the NHSN Hospital User Group calls. We will host these calls every other month. Please register in advance for this call series. Upcoming meetings are as follows.
- Jul 9, 2024 10:30 AM
- Sep 10, 2024 10:30 AM
- Nov 12, 2024 10:30 AM
Please reach out to the NHSN Epi Team if you have any questions or have topic ideas for any of the calls.
Monthly Long-Term Care NHSN User Group
You are invited to register for the monthly NHSN skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) forum to share and, collaborate, improve reporting accuracy, and increase user knowledge. Calls are scheduled for the second Thursday of the month, 11:00 a.m. – noon. Upcoming meetings are as follows:
- Jun 13, 2024
- July 11, 2024
- August 8, 2024
- Sep 12, 2024
Please reach out to the NHSN Epi Team for more information.
NHSN Support Services for SNFs
For a more comprehensive list of NHSN support options the HAI Epi Team can provide to skilled nursing facilities, see the NHSN Support and Technical Assistance for Skilled Nursing Facilities flyer.
NHSN Reporting Updates and Trainings
Updated COVID-19 Vaccination Up-To-Date Definition
On April 1, 2024, the Up-to-Date Definition changed in NHSN for reporting weekly resident and staff COVID-19 vaccinations. Individuals aged 65 years and older are up to date when they have received 2 doses of the updated 2023-2024 COVID-19 vaccine or received 1 dose of the updated 2023-2024 COVID-19 vaccine in the past 4 months.
Individuals aged less than 65 years continue to be up to date when they have received 1 dose of the updated 2023-2024 COVID-19 vaccine.
Be sure to report accurate counts in NHSN and review training slides.
Annual Healthcare Personnel Summary Data
The deadline for healthcare facilities to submit the annual healthcare personnel (HCP) influenza vaccination summary data for the 2023-2024 influenza season is May 15, 2024. CMS-certified free-standing acute care hospitals (ACHs), inpatient rehabilitation facilities (IRFs), critical access hospitals (CAHs), long-term acute care hospitals (LTACHs), prospective payment system (PPS)-exempt cancer hospitals, and skilled nursing facilities (SNFs) are required to report HCP influenza vaccination summary data through NHSN. The reporting period for the 2023-2024 influenza season for Annual Healthcare Personnel (HCP) summary data is from Oct. 1, 2023, through Mar. 31, 2024. Facilities only have to submit one data report for staff employed during the reporting period through the NHSN Healthcare Personnel Safety (HPS) Component.
NHSN Epidemiology Email
The NHSN Epidemiology Team has a dedicated inbox. Please email NHSNepi@doh.wa.gov for any NHSN related questions, issues, or concerns. This will allow our team to respond to your message in a timely manner.
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Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) |
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Puget Sound Chapter
The Puget Sound Region APIC chapter meets on the fourth Thursday of every month from noon to 2:00 p.m.
- We review important legislative updates, IPC news, and educational opportunities.
- Journal club and round table discussions keep IPs up-to-date on recent activity in the IPC field, as well as connect with local IPs.
Register in advance for meetings. Links to registration sites can be found on our social media and website a few weeks prior.
APIC Podcasts:
AJIC Monthly Podcast
New Episode:
Recent Episodes:
Tune in the first Thursday of each month for new episodes.
APIC Monthly 5 Second Rule Podcast
Recent Episodes:
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WA DOH Influenza Update for Week 18 now available!
The weekly summary is available.
State Summary
- Influenza-like illness activity was minimal during week 18.
- To date, 115 lab-confirmed influenza deaths have been reported for the 2023-2024 season.
- To date, 83 influenza-like illness outbreaks in long term care facilities have been reported for the 2023-2024 season.
- During week 18, 1.4 percent of visits among Influenza-like Illness Network (ILINet) participants were for influenza-like illness, which was below the baseline of 1.9 percent.
- During week 18, 3.1 percent of specimens tested by WHO and NREVSS collaborating laboratories in Washington were positive for influenza.
Historic influenza reports
DOH creates influenza reports for healthcare providers and public health including:
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 Resume Stakeholder Engagement to Consider Amending Rules to Implement Substitute House Bill 1218
A Dear Provider letter is now available.
Critical Staffing Management in Long-Term Care Settings Update
A Dear Provider letter is now available.
DHQP Research Questions to Close Gaps in Patient Safety
On April 15, DHQP released a list of unanswered research questions about healthcare threats including antimicrobial resistance and sepsis. Answers to these questions will help the U.S. "get to zero" healthcare-associated infections and move the field forward with strategies that will allow for safer and more equitable health care. We strongly encourage you to review and share these research topics and questions aimed at investigators, funders, state, territorial, and local health departments, and patient and family representatives.
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Safe Healthcare Blog
In a new blog post, Advancing Health Equity in Health Care, Jacinda C. Abdul-Mutakabbir, PharmD, MPH, and Lauri A. Hicks, DO, FACP, highlight the April 2024 issue of ICHE, which includes their article Advancing Health Equity through Action in Antimicrobial Stewardship and Healthcare Epidemiology. The article summarizes how social determinants of health interact to cause and exacerbate disparities within infectious diseases, summarizes the challenges with identifying and mitigating health inequities in infection prevention and antimicrobial stewardship, and describes next steps and a call to action.
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 LHJ HAI partners! Be on the lookout for two new products and resources recently released by the Council for Outbreak Response: Healthcare Associated Infections and Antimicrobial-Resistant Pathogens (COHRA).
CORHA Principles and Practices for Healthcare Outbreak Response: Supplement A: Medical Product Investigations
This resource outlines general principles for responding to medical product contamination events and includes detection and reporting guidelines, examples of contamination events, assessment questions to guide investigations, and other helpful resources.
Environmental Fungi Resource
This page features key resources for preventing and responding to environmentally ubiquitous fungi in healthcare settings, additional guidance, and other useful information.
Subscribe to receive monthly correspondence from CORHA which includes highlights of recently released tools and resources, as well as summaries of notable outbreaks and other news.
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NACCHO: Assessment of Local Health Department Data Use for Outbreak Response in Healthcare Settings
Please see this informative factsheet for more information!
LTC Townhall: Understanding Enhanced Barrier Precautions
Join the Long-Term Care (LTC) Townhall that PRB colleagues are hosting with support from Project Firstline on May 22, 1-2 PM ET. We will discuss MDROs and why they are a concern, define Enhanced Barrier Precautions, and address common questions. Register today!
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