Editor's Note The Joint Commission on March 21 approved a new National Patient Safety Goal (NPSG) on catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) for accredited nursing care centers. Also approved were revisions for the existing CAUTI NPSG for accredited hospitals and critical access hospitals, which were made to bring the NPSG…

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Editor's Note The Joint Commission and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are collaborating on an initiative designed to adapt, enhance, and disseminated CDC guidelines on infection prevention in ambulatory health care settings. The initiative, “Adaptation and Dissemination of Outpatient Infection PrevenTion (ADOPT) Guidance,” will focus on free-standing…

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Editor's Note Key skills may be lacking among nurses who treat patients with urinary catheters, finds this study funded by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Of 394 nurses surveyed, 76.1% reported receiving education on catheter-associated urinary tract infection risk reduction in the last 12 months. Though 83% said they…

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Editor's Note Though US hospitals are making gains in the fight against healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) and antibiotic-resistant bacteria, too many patients continue to get these infections, according to a Vital Signs report released March 3 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Among the findings in the report:…

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Editor's Note The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on March 1 updated its Prevention Status Reports, which rank the biggest public health issues in the US. Among the 10 most important health problems are: healthcare-associated infections heart disease and stroke nutrition, physical activity, and obesity HIV. The Prevention Status…

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Editor's Note Hypothermia is associated with an increased risk for surgical site infections (SSIs) in patients having surgery to repair a hip fracture, finds this study presented March 2 at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. Of 1,525 patients analyzed: hypothermia occurred in 13.2% of cases…

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Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on March 1 released new guidelines to prevent the transmission of the Zika virus from human cells, tissues, and cellular and tissue-based products. The guidance addresses both living and deceased donations of corneas, bone, skin, heart valves, hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells, gestational tissues…

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Editor's Note The risk of developing a surgical site infection (SSI) increased significantly in patients who had a total hip within 3 months of receiving a steroid injection in the hip joint, finds this study presented March 2 at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. Analyzing…

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Editor's Note The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on February 23 updated its Safety Communication on the November 2015 recall of Custom Ultrasonics automated endoscope reprocessors. The update recommends that healthcare facilities transition to alternative methods to reprocess flexible endoscopes as soon as possible. In November, the FDA cited violations…

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Sterilization packaging is considered a medical device and thus it must undergo validation testing before being used in healthcare facilities. To ensure proper packaging that will maintain the integrity of sterilization, consult the packaging manufacturers’ instructions for use (IFU) and follow the sterilization standards and guidelines from the Association for…

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