We recently launched the Home Health Infection Prevention Toolkit. The Toolkit contains resources and best practices to reduce Acute Care Hospitalization (ACH) or Emergency Department (ED) visits related to wound, urinary tract and respiratory infections. The primary audience is home health agencies, but includes tools for patients, family members, caregivers and agency leaders.
Access the Home Health Infection Prevention Toolkit
“The new Home Health Conditions of Participation (COP) demand a greater focus on infection prevention and control. They state that as a component of an agency’s QAPI program, it must establish, document and maintain a home health infection prevention & control program with a goal of preventing and controlling communicable diseases. Few tools exist that are specific to the home care environment; we wanted to assist agencies with tools and resources to reduce the spread of infections, especially wounds, respiratory and urinary tract infections. I think it is important to remember that whatever setting care is given in, QUALITY should remain at the forefront,” stated Cheri Fast, RN; Quality Improvement Manager for Great Plains QIN in South Dakota.
The Toolkit contains many tools and resources for wound, urinary tract and respiratory infections, immunizations, antibiotic stewardship, patient and family education, risk assessment and surveillance, sepsis and much more.
“Our team put in considerable time and energy in constructing a toolkit to best meet the needs of home health agencies. We knew there was a gap in infection prevention tools for home health agencies. We believed, through the creation of this toolkit, we could assist home health agencies in attaining their infection prevention goals. The response has validated our efforts. We launched the toolkit three weeks ago; over 500 persons have accessed the tools to date. The feedback on credibility of the tools and ease of use has been very favorable. We will continue to add resources, best practices and related tools to ensure we are meeting the needs of our audience in all areas of infection prevention,” stated Keri McDermott, Communications Director with the Great Plain QIN.
We encourage healthcare providers to access the toolkit and share with colleagues and team members.