Recognizing International Infection Prevention Week

Due to the global COVID-19 pandemic, infection prevention and control has received a significant amount of attention from the general public. In fact, the crisis has helped spread greater awareness around the importance of infection prevention work more than ever.

Originating in the late 1980’s, International Infection Prevention Week is celebrated during the third week of October each year, highlighting infection preventionists (IPs) and their ongoing efforts to keep our communities safe. This year, we universally have a greater level of gratitude for the work that goes into effective infection prevention and control as we continue responding to and recovering from the impact of COVID-19 globally.

At PointClickCare, we’re encouraging everybody – healthcare personnel, patients, and families – to celebrate our IPs and the broader infection prevention community for their bravery and expertise in the fight against COVID-19. Here are just a couple of reasons why:

They’re superheroes

The IP is responsible for a health facility’s entire strategy for and execution around infection prevention and control. By ensuring that sources of infections are isolated, these teams limit the spread of infectious organisms and prevent healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) across their facility. Today, they’re working tirelessly to ensure that each individual COVID-19 case within their facility remains isolated, so the entire patient population continues to get the care they need without fear of a spread.

They’re making a difference

IP teams can reduce HAIs by at least 30 percent with effective infection prevention and control. At a time when facilities are faced with a pandemic of an infectious disease, this impact is critical in delivering quality care and maintaining smooth operations.

With Great Impact Comes Even Greater Opportunity  

To help prevent the spread of any sort of infection, early identification is key. Detecting and correctly correlating symptoms can prove to be challenging, especially because tracing infection cases is often a manual process. Collecting and collating information without the use of analysis tools takes significant time and makes it difficult for IPs to make care recommendations, communicate updates to staff, or act on their infection prevention and control strategies.

IPs play a critical role in the healthcare ecosystem, so it’s equally important for facilities to equip them with tools that can optimize infection prevention and control. A central platform where care staff can effectively manage infection cases not only expedites information sharing to inform procedural and staffing decisions, but also achieves greater compliance with regulatory requirements while establishing trust and confidence with staff, patients, and their families.

There has never been a more critical time to show our appreciation for IPs’ tireless work in keeping us safe and healthy. Equipping them with automated tools to streamline their work can do just that. Read our blog, “The Cost of Poor Infection Prevention & Control,” to learn why facilities can’t afford to approach infection prevention and control manually.