Infection Control Information and Programs
Information topics and Frequently Asked Questions are selected from the regulations, the latest Infection Control information published by regulatory and advisory agencies and from questions received in the TMC Client Services Center.
The information and programs are designed for medical and dental practices that want to reduce their risk for patient and employee infection. Preventing infections is an important Risk Management step for the practice, reducing the potential for civil action and reputational damage.
TMC Infection Control Program
Dental Infection Control Guidelines
Hepatitis B Outbreak in NC Linked to Infection Control Issues
Medicare Tool/Checklist for ASC Inspections
What to do about Dental Unit Waterlines
Proper Decontamination of Instruments
Ambulatory Surgical Centers – Infection Control Inspections
Dental Infection Control Guidelines
The CDC, working with other authorities on infection control, developed guidelines for Infection Control in Dental settings. This report consolidates recommendations for preventing and controlling infectious diseases and managing personnel health and safety concerns related to infection control in dental settings. This 2003 report 1) updates and revises previous CDC recommendations regarding infection control in dental settings; 2) incorporates relevant infection-control measures from other CDC guidelines; and 3) discusses concerns not addressed in previous recommendations for dentistry.
You can refer to the recommendations from the report to assist you with any aspect of Infection Control. The full report provides the background and evidence as to why this recommendation was made. Of course, there have been updates since 2003 and you can attend one of the TMC Infection Control seminars or webinars to obtain the latest information. 
Hepatitis B Outbreak in NC Linked to Infection Control Issues
In recent months the media has reported on a hepatitis B outbreak in a North Carolina assisted living facility which has impacted eight patients, five of which have lost their lives to the illness. In the final report published by the NC Division of Public Health the following conclusion was listed: (Read the Report)
Our investigation suggests that person-to-person transmission of hepatitis B occurred in the assisted living facility, most likely as a result of unsafe blood glucose monitoring practices.
You may ask why this information is applicable to the out-patient environment. Many practices
perform blood glucose testing on site and with this tragic scenario, the time is now to review your
process to ensure you are providing safe care for patients. The CDC has issued warnings and guidelines on safe practices due to other Hep B outbreaks associated with the use of blood glucose monitoring.
What to Do About Dental Unit Waterlines
At this time, there is no evidence that dental unit water is harmful to patients, but based on current recommendations water unitized in units in your practice for routine care should meet the current standards for safe drinking water which is less than 500 CFU/mL. It is conceivable that colony counts in water from untreated systems can exceed 1,000,000 CFU/mL. Using water of uncertain quality is inconsistent with basic infection control principles.
Ambulatory Surgery Centers Have Increased Inspections? Are You Ready?
In an effort to support Health and Human Services 2009 action plan to prevent healthcare acquired infections, $9 million in funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) was made available to state survey agencies in 43 states for inspections of surgery centers and the CDC provided an additional $40 million to state public health departments to create or expand state-based health care associated infection (HAI) prevention and surveillance efforts and strengthen the public health workforce trained to prevent HAIs.
A report from the CDC Fifth Decennial International Conference in 2010 on Healthcare-Associated Infections indicated that early investigations revealed two-thirds (68%) of the pilot ASCs had at least one lapse in infection control noted by surveyors; 18% had lapses identified in three or more of the five categories evaluated by surveyors. Sites were surveyed in North Carolina, Maryland and Oklahoma utilizing the CMS tool for Infection Control Inspections of Ambulatory Surgical Centers.
All ASCs that accept Medicare must meet the Medicare standards for infection control to remain eligible to accept Medicare reimbursements. Are you ready for an inspection?
Proper Decontamination of Instruments – Are You Following the Correct Steps?
Recently there has been a flurry of media focus on the lack of basic infection control practices in ambulatory care. When the situations have been further investigated, one of the items associated with possible transmission of hep B, hep C, and HIV was the lack of adequate disinfection or sterilization of equipment used to provide patient care. Be sure your practice is following the appropriate guidelines for the proper disinfection or sterilization of instruments. The last thing that you want is to be on the evening news!
