Virginia Infection Prevention & Control Training Alliance (VIPTA)

VIPTA is a statewide infection prevention and control education collaborative, led by the Virginia Healthcare-Associated Infections Advisory Group.  Through partnership, VIPTA curates IPC resources for Virginia’s healthcare, congregate care, and public health settings.

More about VIPTA

 

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World Health Organization: Your 5 Moments for Hand Hygiene. Haemodialysis in ambulatory care.

My 5 Moments for Hand Hygiene

Hand hygiene is essential for patient safety, and reminders are key! The World Health Organization’s “My 5 Moments for Hand Hygiene” posters are customized to fit your work environment.

These new posters offer tailored guidance to fit different settings. Whether you’re working with patients in outpatient clinics or managing complex procedures in hemodialysis, these posters highlight the critical moments to clean your hands: before patient contact, before a clean procedure, after exposure to body fluids, after patient contact, and after touching patient surroundings.

Ways to Use This Resource

  • Update your orientation and trainings with the “My 5 Moments for Hand Hygiene” poster that best matches your work environment.
  • Post education posters (with a wipeable surface) in spaces where staff do hand hygiene.

Target Audience: Essential IPC education level

Guidance & Regulation Updates

VIPTA members track guidance and regulation resources to share source documents that guide infection prevention and control practices for public health staff and clinical and non-clinical healthcare personnel.

The date of the regulation or guidance update is included in each post.  Please check linked content to be sure it is the most up to date and recommended practice.

Virginia Department of Health Clinician Letter – Communicable Disease Updates (8/26/24)   
VDH
Any Practice Setting
Emergency Preparedness & Operations
Standard Precautions
Surveillance
Transmission-Based Precautions
Vaccination
Updates and recommendations for healthcare providers on pertussis, avian influenza A(H5N1), invasive Group A Streptococcus, and mpox in Virginia.
CDC Health Alert Network (HAN): Mpox Caused by Human-to-Human Transmission of Monkeypox Virus in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) with Spread to Neighboring Countries (8/7/2024)
CDC
Any Practice Setting
Surveillance
CDC issued a HAN Health Update to provide additional information about the outbreak of monkeypox virus (MPXV) in the DRC.
CDC Update to Infection Prevention and Control of Mpox in Healthcare Settings (8/2/2024)
CDC
Any Practice Setting
Auditing / Observation / Monitoring / Assessment Tools
Emergency Preparedness & Operations
Employee/Occupational Health
Guidance updates include: Revising scenarios to apply to healthcare personnel or patients who experience exposure to mpox virus in a healthcare setting and adjusting risk categories based on current evidence.
CDC National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) Hospital Respiratory Data (8/1/2024)
CDC
Acute Care Hospital
Department of Health
Surveillance
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is updating the Hospital Inpatient Quality Reporting (IQR) Program to require acute care hospitals and critical access hospitals to electronically report information via NHSN about COVID-19, influenza, and RSV beginning November 1, 2024. This reported information will help provide situational awareness of the impact of these respiratory diseases. 
Facility Guidelines Institute (FGI) Facility Code, 2026 Edition (draft)
Any Practice Setting
Construction
Documents for the design and construction of hospitals, outpatient facilities, and residential health, care, and support facilities are open for public comment until September 30, 2024 Interested professionals in the healthcare and long-term care industries (including infection preventionists) are encouraged to review and contribute comments on the draft documents
Behind the scenes peek of VPM videographers and actor preparing to do a nasal swab on a nursing home resident with dementia (not seen).

Ready for Anything: EVMS and Compassionate Crisis Care

The COVID-19 pandemic showed us the tough challenges faced by long-term care residents and their caregivers. It also led to a great team effort that we’re excited to share. Dr. Paul Aravich from Eastern Virginia Medical School of Macon and Joan Brock Virginia Health Sciences at Old Dominion University led a group from all over Virginia to create the Compassionate Crisis Care video series.

These videos are a valuable tool for healthcare workers, caregivers, and emergency responders. They teach how to provide compassionate care during emergencies like disasters and pandemics. The videos offer practical techniques for handling tough situations with empathy and skill. The Compassionate Crisis Care team has made a big impact by focusing on this important part of infection prevention and control.

We encourage you to watch these helpful videos and celebrate the Compassionate Crisis Care team’s important work. Congratulations to everyone involved for their outstanding contribution to improving crisis care!

Image: Behind the scenes peek of VPM videographers and actor preparing to do a nasal swab on a nursing home resident with dementia (not seen).

IPC Education & Training Library

Search the VIPTA library of curated infection prevention and control (IPC) education and training resources. The IPC Education & Training Resource Library includes state and national resources related to healthcare-associated infections, antimicrobial resistance and/or IPC. Visit the VIPTA FAQ page to learn more about VIPTA library content.

 

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Last Updated: February 14, 2024