This 2019 Nursing Home Infection Control Worksheet (ICWS) is a collaborative effort by CMS and CDC and meant to be used by facilities as a self-assessment tool. It comprises both regulatory requirements and best practices in infection prevention and control. A facility that uses this ICWS will identify gaps in practice and have a “roadmap” that can lead to an improved infection prevention and control program. The assessment reviews the following domains:

• Infection Control program infrastructure and Infection Preventionist
• Infection Preventionist relationship to Quality Assurance Committee
• Infection surveillance and outbreak response.
• Influenza and pneumococcal Immunization
• Linen management
• Infection prevention during transitions of care
• Water Management Program

This Chartbook on Patient Safety includes a section with results from the National Nursing Home Survey on Patient Safety:

National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report

This Patient Safety chartbook is part of a family of documents and tools that support the National Healthcare Quality and Disparities Report (QDR). The QDR includes annual reports to Congress mandated in the Healthcare Research and Quality Act of 1999 (P.L. 106-129). This chartbook includes a summary of trends across measures of patient safety from the QDR and figures illustrating select measures of patient safety. A PowerPoint version is also available that users can download for presentations.

At the conclusion of the session, the participant will be able to accomplish the following:

• Describe the burden of multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs).
• Describe challenges to preventing MDRO transmission in nursing homes.
• Define Standard Precautions, Enhanced Barrier Precautions, and Contact Precautions.
• Identify which residents and activities meet criteria for Enhanced Barrier Precautions.
• Discuss best practices for implementing Enhanced Barrier Precautions.

Unrecognized spread of germs from healthcare personnel (HCP) contamination occurs every day in healthcare settings, posing a risk to patients and HCP alike. Recent Ebola virus outbreaks demonstrated that the potential for transmission of any pathogen in healthcare settings poses an immediate and serious threat. 

 Preventing the spread of germs in healthcare is essential to protecting the health of patients and HCP. This International Infection Prevention Week, the CDC Prevention Epicenters Program is pleased to announce a groundbreaking new journal supplement, “Personal Protective Equipment for Preventing Contact Transmission of Pathogens: Innovations from CDC’s Prevention Epicenters Program,” composed of 14 in-depth studies, published in this month’s Clinical Infectious Diseases. This research provides insights from recent personal protective equipment (PPE) work in U.S. healthcare settings. It provides evidence to improve routine use of PPE, and to prevent contact transmission of Ebola and other infectious diseases in healthcare settings.

All healthcare settings can benefit from improvements in PPE use and design. PPE plays an important role in preventing the spread of infectious diseases in healthcare settings, but its optimal design and use need to be informed by dedicated research to achieve the reliability and effectiveness needed to protect patients and HCP. 

Transitions from hospitals to long-term care facilities are associated with safety hazards. This prospective cohort study identified adverse events in the 45 days following acute hospitalization among 555 nursing home residents, which included 762 discharges during the study period. Investigators found that adverse events occurred after approximately half of discharges. Common adverse events included falls, pressure ulcers, health care–associated infections, and adverse drug events. Most adverse events were deemed preventable or ameliorable. The authors conclude that improved communication and coordination between discharging hospitals and receiving long term-care facilities are urgently needed to address this patient safety gap. A previous WebM&M commentary discussed challenges of nursing home care that may contribute to adverse events.

Princeton Place Did Not Always Comply With Care Plans for Residents Who Were Diagnosed With Urinary Tract Infections (A-06-17-02002)

Princeton Place did not always provide services to Medicaid-eligible residents diagnosed with UTIs in accordance with their care plans, as required by Federal regulations. Specifically, Princeton Place staff did not always document that they monitored the residents' urine appearance at the frequencies specified in their care plans. Princeton Place did not have policies and procedures to ensure that its staff provided services in accordance with its residents' care plans. As a result of Princeton Place not following residents' care plans, the residents were at increased risk for contracting UTIs and for incurring complications from UTIs, including requiring hospitalization.

The Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General issued two new reports that address the identification, reporting and investigation of incidents of potential abuse and neglect of our nation's most vulnerable populations, including seniors and individuals with developmental disabilities. OIG issued an early alert in 2017 based on the preliminary findings of this work. Our resulting work, released in June 2019, identify thousands of Medicare claims that indicate abuse and neglect of beneficiaries, including beneficiaries in skilled nursing facilities. If you suspect someone is the victim of abuse or neglect, contact law enforcement immediately.

Reports:

CMS Could Use Medicare Data To Identify Instances of Potential Abuse or Neglect 

Incidents of Potential Abuse and Neglect at Skilled Nursing Facilities Were Not Always Reported and Investigated

Purpose of Review

To assess adverse events of antidepressants in the treatment of major depressive disorder in adults 65 years of age or older.

Key Messages

In people 65 years of age or older:

• Serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) (duloxetine and venlafaxine) cause adverse events more often than placebo and most likely lead to discontinuation of therapy during treatment of up to 12 weeks.
• Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) (escitalopram and fluoxetine) most likely cause adverse events at a similar frequency to placebo therapy but still may lead to discontinuation of therapy during treatment of up to 12 weeks.
• Duloxetine most likely increases the risk of falls over longer treatment (<24 weeks)
• Adverse events contributing to discontinuation of therapy were rarely reported in a way that allowed clear characterization of what adverse events to expect.
• Few studies compared other antidepressants to placebo or to each other, or reported other outcomes. Trial data were sparse, and trials were short in duration, underpowered, and studied low doses of antidepressants. Observational studies had limitations related to their design. Long-term, rigorous comparative studies are needed.