Infection prevention and control in healthcare settings is necessary to prevent the transmission of healthcare-associated infections (HAIs). It demands a basic understanding of the epidemiology of disease; the risk factors that increase patient susceptibility to infections; and the practices, procedures, and treatments that may result in infections. Prevention of HAIs requires the cooperative efforts of hospitals, medical personnel, patients, and the community.
The North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services has staff members and work groups dedicated to advancing infection prevention and control in the state. For example:
- The HHS has staff dedicated to assist facilities with current guidelines, and resources to assess and improve infection control programs using prevention measures, data collection and analysis, National Health Safety Network (NHSN) and surveillance.
- The HAI program has quarterly phone meetings with state Infection Preventionists (IPs) to discuss current activities among HAI prevention programs, disease issues, and antibiotic stewardship.
- The Division of Public Health has an HAI/AR Engagement Group that meets quarterly to discuss current infection prevention and antibiotic stewardship activities within the state and work towards goals for continued improvement.
Precautions
Precautions are a set of recommendations and practices that are designed to prevent the transmission of infectious diseases. There are two tiers of recommended precautions: standard precautions for all patient care and transmission-based precautions.
IPC Resources
Infection prevention and control (IPC) resources provide medical personnel with the tools to enable them to implement an infection control program and protect themselves and others from infections.
Resources are available for multiple types of healthcare facilities, including acute and critical access hospitals, long term care, and outpatient/ambulatory and include the following topics: dialysis, injection safety, oncology, pain management, and sepsis and multidrug resistant organisms. You can also order brochures on different IPC topics.
Forms
Forms are available for those seeking to report a hospital-acquired infection, complete the Infection Prevention registration form, or those looking for additional forms.