New York - Infection Control

At the completion of this activity, healthcare providers will be able to:

• Learn about the standards of professional conduct in the field of practices of infection prevention and control.
• Recognize the responsibility of health care workers to adhere to scientifically accepted principles and practices of infection prevention, monitor compliance of infection control protocols and identify consequences of non-compliance.
• Describe how pathogenic organisms are spread in healthcare settings, prevention strategies and infection control concept application in profession practice.
• Define healthcare-associated disease transmission, engineering controls, safe injection practices, and work practice controls.
• Describe specific high-risk practices and procedures that increase the opportunity for healthcare worker and patient exposure to potentially infectious material.
• Describe specific measures to prevent transmission of bloodborne pathogens from patient to patient, healthcare worker to patient, and patient to healthcare worker via contaminated injection equipment.
• Identify work practice controls designed to eliminate the transmission of bloodborne pathogens during use of sharp instruments and that can be utilized to prevent patient exposure to bloodborne pathogens.
• Identify the steps to follow in the evaluation, diagnosis and conduct of an accident due to exposure to infected biological material.
• Identify specific barriers or personal protective equipment and circumstances for patient and healthcare worker protection from exposure to potentially infectious material.
• Definitions of terms related to contamination and cleaning, level of disinfection and medical devices.
• Recognize the importance of the correct application of reprocessing methods for assuring the safety and integrity of patient care equipment in preventing transmission of bloodborne pathogens.
• Recognize the professional’s responsibility for maintaining a safe patient care environment in all healthcare settings and the role of occupational health strategies in protecting health care workers and patients.
• Recognize non-specific disease findings that should prompt evaluation of healthcare workers.
• Identify occupational health strategies for preventing transmission of bloodborne pathogens and other communicable diseases in healthcare workers and resources for evaluation of healthcare workers infected with HIV, HBV and/or HCV.
• Describe, identify, and understand the risk of developing sepsis, early signs and symptoms, and when to seek of medical evaluation for sepsis and the role of the NYS Sepsis Improvement Initiative.