Transmission Interrupted

The summer vacation season is in full swing and parents everywhere are faced with the prospect of traveling with children and keeping them safe during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. What tips and tricks can parents employ to help keep their family safe during summer travels? What guidance can clinicians provide to help parents prepare for any and all scenarios they may encounter when traveling at home or abroad? Join us for this special episode of Transmission Interrupted as NETEC’s Jill Morgan welcomes Dr. Amyna Husain and Dr. Andi Shane to the program to discuss best practices for traveling without transmission this vacation season. 

Questions or comments for NETEC? Contact us at [email protected].

Visit us on the web at netec.org/podcast.

Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Division of Pediatric Emergency Medicine; Director of Disaster Planning

Biocontainment Unit, Pediatric subcommittee co-director

Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Professor of Pediatrics and Division Chief, Division of Pediatric Infectious Disease

Marcus Professor of Hospital Epidemiology and Infection Control

Emory University School of Medicine and Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta

Emory Healthcare, Atlanta, GA

CDC Travelers’ Health: https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel

Pre-Travel Providers’ Rapid Evaluation Portal: https://gten.travel/prep/prep 

Staying Healthy While You Travel: https://kidshealth.org/en/parents/family-travel.html

Air Travel Tips from the American Academy of Pediatrics: https://pags.com/Our-Blog/November-2019/Air-Travel-Tips-from-the-American-Academy-of-Pedia (Accessed 7/13/2022, No longer available)

Travel: Frequently Asked Questions and Answers: CDC, https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/travelers/faqs.html (Accessed 7/13/2022)

NETEC COVID-19 Novel Coronavirus Resources: https://repository.netecweb.org/exhibits/show/ncov/ncov

NETEC COVID-19 Webinar Series Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5JyGXQ8MP0TZXU2Ldy-jzjLuUNfFX8JZ

NETEC Resource Library: https://repository.netecweb.org

The National Emerging Special Pathogens Training and Education Center’s mission is to set the gold standard for special pathogen preparedness and response across health systems in the U.S. with the goals of driving best practices, closing knowledge gaps, and developing innovative resources.

Our vision is a sustainable infrastructure and culture of readiness for managing suspected and confirmed special pathogen incidents across the United States public health and health care delivery systems.

For more information visit NETEC on the web at www.netec.org.

Assess and Advance Your Readiness for Special Pathogens with Free, Expert Consulting.

NETEC offers free virtual and onsite readiness consulting to help health care facilities and EMS agencies prepare for special pathogen events. Our targeted support services are delivered by experts selected and assigned to each inquiry based on the unique needs of your organization. Have a question? Ask a NETEC expert.

For more information visit: netec.org/consulting-services.

The research nurse is an integral part of the clinical research process. They play a vital role in the administration of clinical research studies and the bedside care of patients actively involved in studies. They help ensure research studies run smoothly while the study participants remain safe and are fully informed. 

The COVID-19 pandemic presented a unique opportunity in which it was necessary to quickly implement research in inpatient settings to better understand and treat a novel infectious disease. The research community relied heavily on bedside nurses to successfully operationalize research that unearthed gaps in infection control, workflow infrastructure, research-specific training, and communication practices.

Join host Lauren Sauer, and special guests Jade Flinn and Brooke Noren on this episode of Transmission Interrupted as they discuss the critical role nurses play in clinical research and share lessons learned from their time as clinical research nurses during the pandemic.

Questions or comments for NETEC? Contact us at [email protected].

Visit Transmission Interrupted on the web at netec.org/podcast.

Brooke Noren is a clinical research program manager at the University of Minnesota Medical Center. Brooke works with Pulmonology, Allergy, Critical Care, and Special Pathogens research.

Jade Flinn, M.S.N., is the nurse educator for the Johns Hopkins biocontainment unit (BCU). Flinn graduated from the Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing in 2011 and Notre Dame of Maryland University in 2019. She is trained as a neurocritical care nurse, critical care transport nurse, and nurse education leader. Her role as the BCU nurse educator is to maintain the unit’s overall activation readiness for the safe care of patients infected with high-consequence pathogens. Areas that her work covers include the physical unit, rostered personnel, and systemic preparedness and infrastructure.

Jade serves as a bedside clinical nurse in the Johns Hopkins intensive care units and during inter-hospital ground transports. Her professional interests are in representing the important role of nursing in disaster preparedness and response, health care worker safety and hospital emergency operations. Her most current work involves an international, multicenter COVID-19 clinical trial (Adaptive COVID-19 Treatment Trial), quality improvement developments for category A waste processing using autoclaves, and effective personal protective equipment training for health care worker safety.

Lauren is an Associate Professor in the College of Public Health, Department of Environmental, Agricultural, and Occupational Health, at the University of Nebraska Medical Center and Core Faculty of the UNMC Global Center for Health Security. She is an Adjunct Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine in the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, and the director of the Special Pathogens Research Network.

She previously served as Director of Operations for the Johns Hopkins Office of Critical Event Preparedness where she ran the inpatient COVID19 biobank and served on the COVID19 research steering committee for JHU. Lauren’s research focuses on human subjects research in bio-emergencies and disasters, in particular, ethical implementation of research and navigating the regulatory environment. The goal of her research is to provide health care facilities with the tools needed to conduct a clinical and operational research response in emergencies. 

NETEC COVID-19 Novel Coronavirus Resources: https://repository.netecweb.org/exhibits/show/ncov/ncov

NETEC COVID-19 Webinar Series Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5JyGXQ8MP0TZXU2Ldy-jzjLuUNfFX8JZ

NETEC Resource Library: https://repository.netecweb.org

The National Emerging Special Pathogens Training and Education Center’s mission is to set the gold standard for special pathogen preparedness and response across health systems in the U.S. with the goals of driving best practices, closing knowledge gaps, and developing innovative resources.

Our vision is a sustainable infrastructure and culture of readiness for managing suspected and confirmed special pathogen incidents across the United States public health and health care delivery systems.

For more information visit NETEC on the web at www.netec.org.

Assess and Advance Your Readiness for Special Pathogens with Free, Expert Consulting.

NETEC offers free virtual and onsite readiness consulting to help health care facilities and EMS agencies prepare for special pathogen events. Our targeted support services are delivered by experts selected and assigned to each inquiry based on the unique needs of your organization. Have a question? Ask a NETEC expert.

For more information visit: netec.org/consulting-services.

Flurona! What is it? Is it real? Is it the next superbug? Can someone be infected with the flu and COVID-19 at the same time? The term ‘flurona’ has been making the rounds in the news recently and has caused some confusion. Join us for this episode of Transmission Interrupted as NETEC’s Lauren Sauer and special guests Dr. Jared Evans and Dr. Aneesh Mehta discuss all things flurona. The discussion will touch on the impact Flurona has had this influenza season, current recombination events in the news, the future of respiratory virus season, and steps the healthcare community can take to help mitigate the impact of flurona during the ongoing pandemic.

Questions or comments for NETEC? Contact us: [email protected]

Visit Transmission Interrupted on the web at https://netec.org/podcast/

Dr. Jared Evans is a senior staff scientist whose expertise in virology includes over twenty years of experience in basic and applied research. He currently focuses on applications and response to investigate high-priority pathogens, including dengue and influenza viruses, with an emphasis on single-cell assays, genomics, and novel molecular tools. His responsibilities include leading projects in virology, molecular biology, and genomics and coordinating with partners to reach technical goals. Dr. Evans is also an assistant professor in the Department of Emergency Medicine in the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. Additional areas of expertise include microfluidics and molecular/synthetic biology.

Aneesh Mehta is a Professor of Medicine and of Surgery at Emory University School of Medicine, and also serves as the Chief of Infectious Diseases Services and Assistant Director of Transplant Infectious Diseases at Emory University Hospital. He is a board-certified infectious diseases physician, who received an MD from the University of Oklahoma and completed Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases training at Emory University.

Aneesh has been one of the core physicians of the Emory Serious Communicable Diseases Unit (SCDU) since 2009. He was admitted physician for Emory’s first patient with Ebola Virus Disease and was highly involved in care of the four patients with EVD, one patient with Lassa Fever, and several PUIs cared for by the Emory SCDU. During the Ebola activation, Aneesh was involved in all aspects of unit management, patient care, laboratory handling, and research.

Aneesh is a co-Principal Investigator at NETEC. He also has been involved in the development of the Special Pathogens Research Network Biorepository and evaluation of Medical Countermeasures.

Lauren is an Associate Professor in the College of Public Health, Department of Environmental, Agricultural, and Occupational Health, at the University of Nebraska Medical Center and Core Faculty of the UNMC Global Center for Health Security. She is an Adjunct Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine in the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, and the director of the Special Pathogens Research Network.

She previously served as Director of Operations for the Johns Hopkins Office of Critical Event Preparedness where she ran the inpatient COVID19 biobank and served on the COVID19 research steering committee for JHU. Lauren’s research focuses on human subjects research in bio-emergencies and disasters, in particular, ethical implementation of research and navigating the regulatory environment. The goal of her research is to provide health care facilities with the tools needed to conduct a clinical and operational research response in emergencies. 

NETEC COVID-19 Novel Coronavirus Resources: https://repository.netecweb.org/exhibits/show/ncov/ncov

NETEC COVID-19 Webinar Series Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5JyGXQ8MP0TZXU2Ldy-jzjLuUNfFX8JZ

NETEC Resource Library: https://repository.netecweb.org

In the fall of 2021, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) released a report on the impact COVID-19 had on healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) in 2020. After a decade of steadily declining HAI numbers, health care facilities across the country experienced a dramatic increase in the number of reported healthcare-associated infections during the first year of the pandemic. The impact of this report has been widespread and highlights the need for health care facilities across the country to return to conventional infection prevention and control practices and build resiliency in these programs to withstand future pandemics.

Join NETEC hosts Jill Morgan and Trish Tennill as they discuss the findings of the NHSN’s report and share best practices and lessons learned from infection prevention and special pathogen experts.  

Questions or comments for NETEC? Contact us: [email protected]

Find us on the web: netec.org

Christa Arguinchona is the program manager for the Special Pathogens Unit (SPU) and the Rapid Response Team at Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children’s Hospital in Spokane, Washington. Her responsibilities include developing and maintaining a care team for the SPU and developing policies, protocols, and educational and training plans. Christa also conducts training and education for the frontline facilities within Providence Health Care. Christa collaborates with community, regional, and national partners as part of NETEC’s regional treatment center network. Christa has her master’s and bachelor’s degrees in nursing and is certified in Critical Care. She has over 30 years of critical care experience in the neurological/trauma ICU at Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and Children’s Hospital.

Carrie Billman is the infection control program manager for the Johns Hopkins Health System, and a senior infection control epidemiologist for the Department of Hospital Epidemiology and Infection Control at The Johns Hopkins Hospital (JHH). In her role at JHH, Carrie leads infection prevention activities for the JHH Biocontainment Unit (BCU), including training and education for trained observers and BCU clinical staff, policy and protocol development, and serves as a lead infection preventionist during BCU activations.

Carrie is a trained pediatric nurse with 13 years of experience with acute and lifesaving burn care and is current faculty for the Johns Hopkins University master’s level course in infection prevention. Carrie is currently pursuing her master’s in Health Profession Education through the School of Medicine at the University of Michigan. 

Meredith Fahy has been an infection preventionist at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) since August 2019 and is also the biothreats infection preventionist. Previously, she worked as a staff nurse in the Infectious Disease Associates outpatient clinic where she helped develop and implement a nurse-driven initiative to improve retention in care for high-risk HIV patients, as a staff nurse in the MGH Emergency Department, and has volunteered with the Mercy Ships organization in Freetown, Sierra Leone. She graduated from Northeastern University with her Bachelor of Science in Nursing in 2009 and Master of Public Health in 2016. Meredith lives outside of Boston with her husband and dog.

Jennifer Garland is a disease-specific care reviewer for the Joint Commission and the Special Pathogens Program Manager at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. She is a registered nurse with clinical experience in critical care, public health, neuroscience, and program development.

From January to March 2015, Dr. Garland worked as a clinical care provider in the Maforki Ebola Treatment Unit in Port Loko, Sierra Leone with Partners In Health and The World Health Organization (WHO). She is a subject matter expert for NETEC and a member of The Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network (GOARN) with WHO. Dr. Garland is also certified in Infection Control and Epidemiology.

RN, Emory Healthcare, Atlanta, GA

RN, BSN, Associate Director of Nursing, Bellevue Health & Hospitals, New York, NY

The impact of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) on healthcare-associated infections in 2020: A summary of data reported to the National Healthcare Safety Network: https://doi.org/10.1017/ice.2021.362

CDC National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN): https://www.cdc.gov/nhsn/index.html

NETEC COVID-19 Novel Coronavirus Resources: https://repository.netecweb.org/exhibits/show/ncov/ncov

NETEC COVID-19 Webinar Series Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5JyGXQ8MP0TZXU2Ldy-jzjLuUNfFX8JZ

NETEC Resource Library: https://repository.netecweb.org

As the COVID-19 pandemic rages on, healthcare professionals across the nation continue to face extreme challenges as they battle on the frontlines. The mental and emotional toll this pandemic is taking on care providers is enormous. As such, the resiliency of healthcare professionals has come into focus. Organizations are striving to provide support for staff, and reduce the mental and emotional stressors associated with providing care during the pandemic. How can healthcare professionals more effectively deal with the everyday stressors they encounter? How can facilities prioritize the well-being and resiliency of healthcare professionals in the face of the ongoing pandemic? What strategies can healthcare professionals employ in their practice to best care for patients who may be experiencing vaccine hesitancy?

Join host Lauren Sauer, and special guests Jacinda Abdul-Mutakabbir, Precious Davis, and Dr. Jasmine Marcelin on this episode of Transmission Interrupted as they discuss topics surrounding healthcare professionals, resiliency and vaccine hesitancy through the lens of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Questions or comments for NETEC? Contact us: [email protected]

Find us on the web: netec.org

Jacinda Abdul-Mutakabbir is an Assistant Professor of Pharmacy Practice at Loma Linda University. She recently completed her post-graduate fellowship training at the Anti-Infective Research Laboratory at Wayne State University, Detroit, MI, where she will also receive her MPH. She is a graduate of University of Saint Joseph School of Pharmacy and completed her PGY1 Pharmacy Practice Residency as well as her undergraduate studies at Howard University. Dr. Abdul-Mutakabbir’s research and practice interests include Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics of combination therapy in antimicrobial resistant infections, antimicrobial stewardship, and optimal care for people with HIV. In early 2020 she was recognized among the ECCMID “30 under 30” Outstanding Young Scientists in which she was quoted “as a minority woman researcher, I have worked ardently to promote the necessity of women of color in the research arena.” Dr. Abdul-Mutakabbir is an active member of AAHIVM, IDSA, and ASHP and was the chartering president of the Zeta Iota chapter of Kappa Psi at the University of St. Joseph. She joined SIDP as a trainee and looks forward to a long and successful career of practice, research and service in infectious diseases pharmacotherapy. 

Precious Davis received her Bachelors of Science in Nursing from Nebraska Wesleyan University in 2015, and received her Masters of Science in Nursing Education from Western Governors University in Utah. She previously worked as a nurse at ENCOR/ENHSA managing the care of individuals with developmental disabilities and supervising nursing assistants and medication aides. Precious has worked as a case manager/staff nurse coordinating patient care for high-risk, complex patients at Nebraska Medicine, and recently started working as a nurse case manager at the Specialty Care Center in January 2017.

Dr. Marcelin is a Caribbean native born on the island of Dominica. She received her Bachelor of Science degree with a double major in Biology and Chemistry, and a Diploma in Forensic Science at St. Mary’s University in Halifax Nova Scotia. She then returned to her second home, Antigua & Barbuda, for medical school at American University of Antigua College of Medicine, after which she then completed Internal Medicine residency followed by Infectious Diseases fellowship at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. During her time at Mayo Clinic, she was a Chief Infectious Diseases Fellow, and founding Co-Chair of the Mayo Fellows’ Association Trainee Diversity & Inclusion Committee. Dr. Marcelin is a passionate advocate for diversity and inclusion, and is a founding member of the Infectious Diseases Society (IDSA) Inclusion, Diversity, Access & Equity Taskforce working towards creating a more diverse and inclusive Infectious Diseases specialty. She is also the Co-Director of Digital Innovation & Social Media Strategy for the Division of Infectious Diseases, and Vice-Chair of the IDSA Digital Strategy Advisory group, highlighting her influence and expertise in social media for healthcare professionals. Clinically Dr. Marcelin practices Infectious Diseases, and has a special interest in Antimicrobial Stewardship. As Associate Program Director, she is focused on resident scholarship, diversity and inclusion and wellness. Dr. Marcelin is married to Dr. Alberto Marcelin in the department of Family Medicine at UNMC, and they have two boys. Her interests outside medicine include reading, playing the piano, spending time with her family and all things “Hamilton: An American Musical”.

Lauren is an Associate Professor in the College of Public Health, Department of Environmental, Agricultural, and Occupational Health, at the University of Nebraska Medical Center and Core Faculty of the UNMC Global Center for Health Security. She is an Adjunct Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine in the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, and the director of the Special Pathogens Research Network.

She previously served as Director of Operations for the Johns Hopkins Office of Critical Event Preparedness where she ran the inpatient COVID19 biobank and served on the COVID19 research steering committee for JHU. Lauren’s research focuses on human subjects research in bio-emergencies and disasters, in particular ethical implementation of research and navigating the regulatory environment. The goal of her research is to provide health care facilities with the tools needed to conduct a clinical and operational research response in emergencies. 

NETEC COVID-19 Novel Coronavirus Resources: https://repository.netecweb.org/exhibits/show/ncov/ncov

NETEC COVID-19 Webinar Series Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL5JyGXQ8MP0TZXU2Ldy-jzjLuUNfFX8JZ

NETEC Resource Repository: https://repository.netecweb.org

NETEC Resource Repository: https://repository.netecweb.org