Virginia Infection Prevention & Control Training Alliance (VIPTA)

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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.

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Image of lifeguard in chair with water along the bottom. Text states: Staying Safe in the SPLASH ZONE.

New Resource is making a SPLASH!

Virginia Infection Prevention and Control Training Center (VIPTC) released their first animated video, and it is focused on the risky “splash zone” around healthcare water sources.

Staying Safe in the Splash Zone (3:30)

Target Audience: Essentials IPC education level

Ways to Share These Resources:

  • This quick video, only three and a half minutes long, is perfect to add to facility orientation and to include in annual infection prevention and control updates.
  • You can pair this video with a rounding checklist or splash zone reminder sign that is available from Health Quality Innovation:

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.

CMS Fiscal Year 2027 Acute Care Hospital and Long-Term Care Hospital (LTCH) Prospective Payment System Final Rule: CMS-1849-F (8/04/2026)
CMS
Acute Care Hospital
Acute Care Rehabilitation or Long-Term Care Acute Hospital (LTACH)
Quality Improvement
CMS updated Medicare payment and quality requirements for hospitals and LTCHs. The Hospital-Acquired Condition Reduction Program (HACRP) will continue. Hospitals with the poorest performance on hospital-acquired conditions may lose 1% of Medicare fee-for-service payment.
CMS Fiscal Year 2027 Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF) Prospective Payment System Final Rule: (7/31/2026)
CMS
Nursing Home / Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF)
Quality Improvement
CMS will remove two COVID-19 vaccination measures from the SNF Quality Reporting Program beginning in FY 2028.SNFs will no longer report COVID-19 vaccination coverage for healthcare workers or whether residents are up to date through this program. Facilities should still follow current CDC vaccination guidance and CMS infection control requirements.
Surveillance for Candida auris — United States, 2022–2024 (07/02/2026)
CDC
Acute Care Hospital
Acute Care Rehabilitation or Long-Term Care Acute Hospital (LTACH)
Department of Health
Nursing Home / Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF)
Surveillance
CDC reported continued growth of Candida auris in U.S. healthcare settings from 2022–2024. Clinical cases increased from 2,882 to 6,197, and screening cases increased from 6,226 to 12,432. CDC emphasizes continued C. auris screening of high-risk patients, appropriate Transmission-Based Precautions, use of disinfectants effective against C. auris, communication of C. auris status during transfers, antifungal susceptibility testing, and strong coordination between healthcare facilities and public health to limit further transmission.

Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America (SHEA)

SHEA

Infection Prevention and Control of Candida auris in Pediatric Settings (6/23/2026) The guidance recommends identifying at-risk pediatric patients through targeted screening, using appropriate isolation and room-placement precautions, and coordinating closely with infection prevention and public health partners when Candida auris is suspected or confirmed. It also emphasizes prevention through meticulous hand hygiene, effective environmental cleaning and disinfection, and careful...

Photo of Fairfax County Health Department staff celebrating Antimicrobial Awareness Week with purple balloons.

FCHD’s Antibiotic Awareness Week: A Celebration of Health & Education

The Fairfax County Health Department’s Strengthening Antimicrobial Stewardship in Skilled Nursing Facilities (SASS) team put together an amazing educational program for U.S. Antibiotic Awareness Week (USAAW) in November 2023! Their team is using CDC funding to focus on improving antimicrobial stewardship in skilled nursing facilities. During USAAW, they rolled out a toolkit for skilled nursing facilities to use for their own facility education.  

We spoke to Samantha Christensen, Fairfax County Health Department (FCHD) HAI Epidemiologist to learn more about their Antibiotic Awareness Week toolkit. The FCHD started the week off with a big celebration, beginning with a kickoff breakfast, an antimicrobial stewardship podcast playlist with QR codes for easy access, and a microbe “joke of the day”. They also put up a tri-fold education poster with purple themed balloons and decorations, wore purple for Antimicrobial Awareness Week, had antimicrobial stewardship themed trivia with Starbucks gift cards for prizes, and held a watch party (with snacks, of course) for everyone to view educational infection prevention and control videos!

And because we know you want to hear the jokes…. “What’s the most popular antibiotic in Italy?  Amoxsicilian!”   Here’s another good one… “What’s the opposite of an antibiotic?  An uncle-biotic!”

Congratulations to Samantha and the entire FCHD team for developing this fun and unique education program to ensure smart antibiotic use in skilled nursing facilities! 

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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