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.
Spread Knowledge, Not Germs: Cough Etiquette Tips
Respiratory season is still in full swing, with rising cases of seasonal influenza locally and H5 bird flu infections and human metapneumovirus globally. It’s the perfect time to revisit the basics of cough etiquette, a critical component of Standard Precautions to reduce the spread of infections. This month, we’re featuring the Pause for Prevention: Cough Etiquette resource developed by Health Quality Innovation Network, a VIPTA partner, to enhance infection prevention and control (IPC) practices across healthcare settings.
What to Expect
- A three-page education package with an educational flyer and a facilitator guide designed to train on cough etiquette using workplace learning principles.
- You can use everyday items like a spray bottle and personal protective equipment to create quick, interactive demonstrations that leave a lasting impression on participants.
Ways to Share this Resource
- Use in team huddles, small group orientation, or one-on-one training sessions.
- Adapt the scenarios to role-play situations involving your healthcare roles and facility.
Target Audience: Essential IPC Education Level
Cheers for Every Infection Prevention Win
This month let’s shine a light on the best practices that add up to big wins. Infection prevention is a team sport, and October is a perfect time to celebrate the everyday wins that keep patients, residents, and staff safe. There’s a new Cheers for Peers award certificate you can download and use right now from VIPTA:
A step-by-step guide to spread “cheer” this month.
- Pick a positive infection prevention accomplishment you want to celebrate.
- Customize and print the new Cheers for Peers certificate (or print a few blank ones to take on rounds).
- Share the certificate with a team member who is doing a great job preventing infections in your healthcare setting. Snap a picture if they’re ok with it.
- Brag on them on a unit board, your intranet, a team huddle, or any space meaningful to the recipient.
- (Optional) Share statewide by submitting to the VIPTA Cheers for Peers nomination form.
Cheers in Action: At Henrico Doctors’ Hospital, Infection Prevention has worked very closely with their equipment cleaning techs on hardwiring the process for cleaning and disinfecting of their neonatal intensive care unit isolettes. Infection Prevention awarded the team a Cheers for Peers certificate for all their hard work and collaboration with the IP team!
Looking for inspiration on what wins to celebrate? Take some of these ideas and tailor to your team’s accomplishments.
- Hand Hygiene Hero: Perfect hand hygiene on a spot audit.
- Infection-Free Milestone: A unit that stayed free of healthcare-associated infections for the month, six months, or a year.
- Oral Care All-Stars: A unit has >90% oral care compliance to lower healthcare-associated pneumonia risk.
- Environmental Services Excellence: Terminal clean passes (checklists or fluorescent-gel checks).
- “Wipe Before We Walk” Award (Facilities/Maintenance): Tools cleaned and disinfected after work in a patient room.
- Breathe-Easy Respiratory Infection Prevention Champions: Proper circuit handling and equipment disinfection across the board.
Try it and tell us how it went: Print a certificate, celebrate a win this month, and share your story. Submit a nomination to VIPTA and let us know what you tried, what worked, and how your team reacted. We cannot wait to cheer with you!
