IP Mentor

You made it to the final session.  We have covered so much over the past 5 weeks, and I know that if you implement each one, you will have a more successful 2022!  I am so excited for you to start this year off right.  Finally, I want to talk to you about your professional goals for this year.  Do you have any?  If not, let's explore some possibilities.

Certification in Infection Control

CDC Train Courses and Certification

APIC Membership

Board Member for local APIC Chapter

Complete APIC training

Get your Bachelors or Masters Degree

Attend the APIC National Conference

Attend the SHEA National Conference

Attend another Infection Prevention Conference

Find a Mentor in Infection Prevention

Just like the other lists, this is not an all inclusive list, but hopefully it will give you some ideas.  It's so important for you to continue to grow professionally as an Infection Preventionist so set some goals and put them on your calendar.  You will thank me later!

If you want to listen to the sessions in the Kicking of 2022 like an EXPERT series, click the links below:

Kicking Off 2022 Like An Expert Part 1

Kicking Off 2022 Like An Expert Part 2

Kicking Off 2022 Like An Expert Part 3

Kicking Off 2022 Like An Expert Part 4 

Kicking Off 2022 Like An Expert Part 5 

My goal is to continue providing you with quality educational opportunities that are relevant and convenient.  Feel free to join me here: Facebook Page or here: IP Mentor Podcast.   If you like my page, you will get notifications when I post and go live. If you subscribe to my podcast, you will get notifications for new episodes when they are released.

Interested in learning opportunities and free stuff?  Check out my website: www.ipandcconsulting.com

We are almost done getting ready for the year so hang tight.  I have a couple more things we need to plan for 2022.  Next, we need to plan our Environment of Care rounds for the year.  Most healthcare facilities conduct formal rounds in clinical areas twice per year, and non-clinical areas once per year.  This is always subject to change if there are issues or if you are expecting a regulatory visit.  In my experience, if I don't plan these at the first of the year, I wake up and half the year is gone!  Let's get these dates on the calendar.  I would schedule an entire day for this activity, but you might only need half a day.  Here are some of the common areas you want to monitor:

Nursing units

Kitchen

Laundry Facility

Biohazard and Trash Areas

Specialty Areas- Dialysis, Procedural Areas, etc

Therapy Gyms

Outdoor Areas

Diagnostic Imaging

Laboratory

Materials Management (Storage)

These are some of the most common areas, but this is not an all inclusive list.  It gives you a general idea, but you need to examine your own facility to determine how you want to designate the different areas.  By the way, if you need a tool to help guide your EOC rounds, I have one ready to go here.  If you need more assistance with conducting the rounds, I have an entire course here.  The main thing is that you get this activity on your calendar, and get it done before the end of the year.

Would you rather hear all of this on a podcast?  Don't forget to check out these episodes.

Kicking Off 2022 Like An Expert Part 1

Kicking Off 2022 Like An Expert Part 2

Kicking Off 2022 Like An Expert Part 3

My goal is to continue providing you with quality educational opportunities that are relevant and convenient.  Feel free to join me here: Facebook Page or here: IP Mentor Podcast.   If you like my page, you will get notifications when I post and go live. If you subscribe to my podcast, you will get notifications for new episodes when they are released.

Interested in learning opportunities and free stuff?  Check out my website: www.ipandcconsulting.com

I would enjoy hearing from you if there are some topics that you would like for me to cover in the future.  You can always email me at [email protected].

We have covered a lot already, but stay with me.  We have more to cover to ensure you have a successful year!  Next on the list is new guidelines.  Are there any guidelines that have changed in 2022?  One group that changes their definitions each year is the National Healthcare and Safety Network (NHSN).  If you use their definitions, you want to review the new manual that comes out each year.  Other groups update their guidelines throughout the year, but it's possible you may have missed something.  I recommend skimming through these websites and others that are relevant to your facility to make sure you know all the new guidance for the year.

Once you review all of the regulations, make note if there are areas you need to add to your Infection Prevention Plan.  I like to keep a running list of new guidance along with where I am in the implementation process.  This helps me stay on track with making sure that I am in compliance with all regulations.  You also want to include any accreditation groups such at The Joint Commission to your list to review for new standards.  I know it seems like a lot of reviewing, but remember many of these have not changed so it's just a matter of confirming that you have any new information.  Also, after you do this once, the following years will be much easier because you already know where to go.  Win!

If you are interested in taking a deeper dive into some of the content or you like to listen rather than read, check out my podcast.  Here are the episodes for the first 2 weeks, and last week will be released on Wednesday.

Kicking Off 2022 Like An Expert Part 1

Kicking Off 2022 Like An Expert Part 2

Kicking Off 2022 Like An Expert Part 3

My goal is to continue providing you with quality educational opportunities that are relevant and convenient.  Feel free to join me here: Facebook Page or here: IP Mentor Podcast.   If you like my page, you will get notifications when I post and go live. If you subscribe to my podcast, you will get notifications for new episodes when they are released.

Interested in learning opportunities and free stuff?  Check out my website: www.ipandcconsulting.com

I would enjoy hearing from you if there are some topics that you would like for me to cover in the future.  You can always email me at [email protected].

Let's recap.  So far we have covered your annual infection prevention program and annual training.  Now let's move onto the disinfectant list review.  Each year it's important for you to review the current list of disinfectants and obtain approval through the Infection Prevention Committee or whatever committee oversees the Infection Prevention Program.  Word of caution.  Make sure that the items on the list are the actual products being used by the cleaning staff.  I have been surprised in the past by what I actually found on the cleaning cart.  My best advice would be to take the list and do rounds with the Environmental Services leader to determine if the products match.  Here are a couple of things to look for when doing rounds and talking to staff:

You may think of other items to look for when you start this process so add them to your list.  If you start a list of things to observe this year, this process will be a breeze next year.  As an added bonus, I included a helpful resource related to selecting disinfectants for your facility.  Your list doesn't have to be fancy.  You can create a simple list with the name, active ingredient, and contact time.  Easy peasy!

My goal is to continue providing you with quality educational opportunities that are relevant and convenient.  Feel free to join me here: Facebook Page or here: IP Mentor Podcast.   If you like my page, you will get notifications when I post and go live. If you subscribe to my podcast, you will get notifications for new episodes when they are released.

Interested in learning opportunities and free stuff?  Check out my website: www.ipandcconsulting.com

I would enjoy hearing from you if there are some topics that you would like for me to cover in the future.  You can always email me at [email protected].

Welcome to Part 2 of the series.  Last week we talked about what you need to get done first.  Hopefully, you have completed those tasks so we can continue to move forward.  Next on the list is annual training.  Do you know what annual training is required for your facility?  While each facility has their own regulations to follow, I have made a list of the common types of training that are needed on an annual basis.

While this is not an all inclusive list, it covers the basics.  If you are unsure what training is required, check your state regulations, accrediting agencies (TJC), and federal regulations (OSHA, CMS).  Since I have been an Infection Preventionist for too many years to mention:), I have already created many of these programs.  If you want to use some of my educational programs, you can check them out here.

My goal is to continue providing you with quality educational opportunities that are relevant and convenient.  Feel free to join me here: Facebook Page or here: IP Mentor Podcast.   If you like my page, you will get notifications when I post and go live. If you subscribe to my podcast, you will get notifications for new episodes when they are released.

Interested in learning opportunities and free stuff?  Check out my website: www.ipandcconsulting.com

I would enjoy hearing from you if there are some topics that you would like for me to cover in the future.  You can always email me at [email protected].

Let me officially welcome you to 2022!  I am excited to start a new year, but first we need to do some preparation.  I have talked about this in multiple emails and podcasts, but I feel the need to bring it up again because it is one of the most important strategies for getting your Infection Prevention Program on the right track.  Not to mention it is a requirement for many facilities.  Every successful infection prevention program needs these 3 items:

Annual Evaluation from the prior year (2021)

Risk Assessment for the new year (2022) based on the Annual Evaluation and other data

Infection Prevention Plan and Goals for new year (2022)

If you want a shortcut to developing this process, check out the IP Mentor Program.  Already know how to work through the process, but want customizable documents for your facility?  Go here instead.  If you don't want to use mine, create your own!  Just make sure that you have all of these in place.  

My goal is to continue providing you with quality educational opportunities that are relevant and convenient.  Feel free to join me here: Facebook Page or here: IP Mentor Podcast.   If you like my page, you will get notifications when I post and go live. If you subscribe to my podcast, you will get notifications for new episodes when they are released.

Interested in learning opportunities and free stuff?  Check out my website: www.ipandcconsulting.com.  You can also subscribe to my weekly email updates.

I would enjoy hearing from you if there are some topics that you would like for me to cover in the future.  You can always email me at [email protected].

In this episode, we will discuss how to implement UV-C technology in healthcare facilities. Andy Molnar, VP Business Development at UV-D Robots, will explain the history or UV-C, and how it can be used to enhance your current cleaning and disinfection program.  This is an important topic for IPs and leaders in all types of settings.

You can contact Andy at [email protected] or visit www.uvd-robots.com for more information about UV-C technology.

Want more information on becoming an EXPERT IP?  Visit my website for more information and FREE resources www.ipandcconsulting.com 

Are you ready to get back on track?  Take the FREE 5 day challenge!  Get more details and sign up here.

If you are looking for a COVID-19 prevention tool for your business, organization, or sports team, you can get a free checklist here.  This checklist will help you address the unique challenges faced by community settings during the COVID-19 pandemic.

I get asked this question frequently from new IPs.  How do you plan your day?  I can sympathize.  When I first started out in IP, I felt the same way.  It's hard to know what to do with your time and where to focus when you start out in this role.  It actually took me years to figure out the best schedule!  If you are struggling with this, I have some exciting news. We are going to discuss this topic in detail during today's episode.

Speaking of planning your week, have you heard about the IP Mentor Podcast series, Getting Started in IP?  In each episode, we discuss the essential tasks and roles of a successful infection preventionist.  By the end, you will feel comfortable with your new role as an IP.  Here are all the episodes if you are ready to binge listen and learn!

Getting Started as an IP Part 1

Getting Started as an IP Part 2

Getting Started as an IP Part 3

Getting Started as an IP Part 4

Getting Started as an IP Part 5

Want more information like this?  Join me here: LinkedIn.   If you like my page, you will get notifications when I post new and relevant information. If you subscribe to my podcast, you will get notifications for new episodes when they are released.

Interested in more learning opportunities or a personal consultation? Check out my website: www.ipandcconsulting.com

If you are interested in even more help planning your days and weeks, check out this program developed specifically for IPs!

Can you believe it?  We are halfway through the calendar year!   How in the world did we get here already?  I don't know about you, but this year is flying by.  Maybe it has something to do with the pandemic that has taken up most of our time over the past year and a half!  Regardless of the reason, it's time to start looking at your infection prevention data again.  Why?  Because you don't want to wait until the end of the year to find out that you have a problem and didn't meet your goals!  I know what you're saying....I look at my data every month so why should I look at the last 6 months?  While it's important to look at it monthly, you need to review the trends over several months.  It's also a good idea to look at your numbers collectively to see if you are on track to meeting your annual goals.  I prefer to do a semi-annual (January- June) report every year to see where I am in terms of the goals for the program.  The other benefit to doing a semi-annual report is that is makes completing your annual report much easier because you already have the first 6 months done.  After you complete your report, don't forget to present it to leadership and frontline staff so that they also know how the facility is performing.  This might be hard to think about right now, but you will thank me at the end of the year!

Speaking of reports, if you took my IP Mentor Course, you can use the Annual Report that was included as a template for the semi-annual report.  Just change the dates and only look at 6 months instead of 12.  Not familiar with the IP Mentor Course?  I created a course that guides you through developing an IP Plan, Risk Assessment, Annual Evaluation, and Goals for your facility.  Plus I actually give you sample documents that you can customize for your facility and a whole lot more.  You can go here to learn more.  Having the documents is a huge time saver! By the way, time management is one of the topics I discuss it in my free Master Class, Learn IP Over Lunch.  You can watch it here.

Want more information like this?  Join me here: Facebook Page or here: IP Mentor Podcast or here: LinkedIn.   If you like my pages, you will get notifications when I post and go live so you can ask me questions. If you subscribe to my podcast, you will get notifications for new episodes when they are released.

I would enjoy hearing from you if there are some topics that you would like for me to cover in the future.  You can always email me at [email protected].

Interested in more learning opportunities or a personal consultation? Check out my website: www.ipandcconsulting.com

Are you responsible for new employee orientation?  In my experience, most IPs have at least a section of the new employee orientation process.  That being said, do you know what to cover?  If not, I am going to share with you the basic topics you should cover for orientation.  Before I give you the list, be sure you check your state, federal (OSHA, CDC, CMS), and any accrediting agency (TJC) requirements.  Often times, there are specific education requirements for Infection Prevention in healthcare settings.  This is the list I have used in the past, but you may need to add to it if you have additional requirements.  Of course, I had to add COVID-19 to the list!

OSHA Bloodborne Pathogens

Isolation

Hand Hygiene

Device Associated Infections

COVID-19

PPE

Respirator Training if using N-95 respirators

Tuberculosis

Multidrug Resistant Organisms (MDRO)

Exposure Procedures

Influenza

Cleaning/Disinfection

Hopefully, this will help you develop your ongoing list for training.  I have also include a worksheet you can use to keep up with your training topics.

My goal is to continue providing you with quality educational opportunities that are relevant and convenient.  Feel free to join me here: Facebook Page or here: IP Mentor Podcast.   If you like my page, you will get notifications when I post and go live. If you subscribe to my podcast, you will get notifications for new episodes when they are released.  I would enjoy hearing from you if there are some topics that you would like for me to cover in the future.  You can always email me at [email protected].

Interested in learning opportunities and free stuff?  Check out my website: www.ipandcconsulting.com