Tag: Bloodborne Pathogens

Researchers develop fast, accurate blood test for sepsis, septic shock

Editor's Note A new blood test developed by researchers in Australia could help diagnose sepsis and septic shock in just one hour, compared to the current multi-day methods. The Journal of Proteome Research reported the findings on March 21. Researchers collected blood plasma samples from 152 ICU patients. They used…

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By: Brita Belli
April 10, 2024
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Flexible IV needle aims to reduce needle injuries, infections

Editor's Note Researchers have designed a new IV needle, called the Phase-Convertible, Adapting and non-REusable (P-CARE) needle, which becomes soft and flexible when inserted. The findings were published in Nature Biomedical Engineering on October 30.  Some highlights of the article include: Because medical IV needles are rigid, it allows them…

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By: Brita Belli
November 13, 2023
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FDA proposes individual risk assessment for donating blood

Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on January 27 announced that it is proposing to ease blood donation restrictions by focusing on behavior rather than gender and sexual identity. Under current rules, the FDA allows donations from gay and bisexual men if they haven’t had sex with another…

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By: Judy Mathias
January 31, 2023
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Impact of COVID-19 on hospital-acquired bloodstream infections

Editor's Note This study led by researchers at Ascension Health Care, St Louis, finds that COVID-19 was associated with substantial increases in hospital-acquired bloodstream infections, which were largely attributed to COVID-19 infected patients. A total of 1,417,036 admissions in 69 US hospitals were analyzed before (703,556) and during (713,480) the…

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By: Judy Mathias
February 24, 2022
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Study: Rise in healthcare-associated infections during pandemic

Editor's Note In an analysis published on February 12 by the New England Journal of Medicine, findings indicate that since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, incidents of healthcare-associated infections and other patient safety complications have been on the rise, Becker’s Hospital Review reports. According to the analysis authors, there…

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By: Tarsilla Moura
February 16, 2022
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Splash risks, droplet dispersal during instrument reprocessing

Editor's Note This pilot project, by epidemiologist Cori L. Ofstead, MSPH, and colleagues finds that routine reprocessing activities generate substantial splashing and droplet dispersal, and that currently recommended items of personal protective equipment (PPE) do not adequately protect personnel from exposure. The researchers found that: Droplets were generated during every…

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By: Judy Mathias
February 14, 2022
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Participate in survey on effects of COVID-19 on evacuation of surgical smoke

Editor's Note Please participate in an important nationwide perioperative survey on surgical smoke evacuation. The purpose of the research led by Brenda Ulmer MN, RN, CNOR, is to determine evacuation behaviors in hospitals before COVID-19, and then note changes as the virus continued to spread in the US. Ulmer and…

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By: Judy Mathias
November 10, 2021
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Researchers raise the alarm on splashing during reprocessing--Part 2

Part 1 of this two-part series discussed the splashes and the potential for exposure to pathogens that personnel face daily in sterile processing and endoscopy departments, as well as the current guidelines and strategies for reducing exposures (OR Manager, July 2021, pp 1, 9-11, 15). These risks were derived from…

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By: Judith M. Mathias, MA, RN
July 20, 2021
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Educate to mitigate workplace violence in healthcare--Part 1

Increased tensions during the COVID-19 pandemic have contributed to a spate of violent incidents, many of them directed at healthcare workers (HCWs). About 20% of respondents to a National Nurses United survey in late 2020 of more than 15,000 US registered nurses reported an increase in on-the-job violence caused by…

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By: Elizabeth Wood
July 20, 2021
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New term clarifies instrument point-of-use treatment

What exactly is required to prepare instruments for transport to the decontamination room after a surgical procedure? Point-of-use cleaning, which may also be referred to as precleaning, has been used to describe instrument preparation at the point of use after a surgical procedure. But both point-of-use cleaning and precleaning have…

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By: Susan Klacik, BS, CRCST, ACE, CIS, FCS
July 20, 2021
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