Skilled Nursing Facilities, intermediate care facilities (ICFs) and assisted living centers can access free COVID-19 testing for staff and residents through December 31, 2022. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Operation Expanded Testing (OpET) program expanded access to free testing nationwide to now include skilled nursing facilities, ICFs and assisted living communities, which previously targeted schools, shelters, and correctional facilities.
Category: CDC
CDC Updates Infection Prevention and Control of Monkeypox in Health Care Settings
The CDC updated its guidance for Infection Prevention and Control of Monkeypox in health care settings. Recommendations were added on how to monitor exposed patients and when they should be isolated. In addition, it addresses:
- How to assess the risk of healthcare personnel (HCP) with monkeypox exposures;
- How to monitor HCP; and
- When to apply work restrictions.
The CDC also updated the risk assessment table for HCP to reflect the recommended PPE use based on risk level of exposure.
Information about human-to-human transmission of monkeypox virus is described in a How it Spreads guide.
Emerging Pathogens of Concern
In recent weeks, reports about monkeypox and Candida auris cases in the US have been released. It is important to have a basic understanding of early identification and continued infection prevention and control to help protect residents, staff, and facilities.
Find out more by going to https://www.ahcancal.org/News-and-Communications/Blog/Pages/Emerging-Pathogens-of-Concern.aspx
CDC Releases Nursing Home Communication Toolkit
The CDC recently released a Nursing Home Communication toolkit to help nursing home health care professionals better communicate with residents and families on antibiotic treatment expectations. Pressure from family members to prescribe antibiotics to nursing home residents when they may not be needed has been identified as an opportunity for providers to engage in discussion around appropriate antibiotic use.
The toolkit reviews a four-part communication strategy which has been effective in improving antibiotic prescribing in outpatient settings. Two nursing home-specific scenarios applying these principles are also provided.