In This Issue - September 2024

Program Updates
- HIV Testing Guidelines
- Cognitive Behavioural Therapy Program
- Home Visiting Programs
Announcements
- National Infection Control Week
- New Measles Resources
- Addressing Vaccine Hesitancy
Educational Opportunities
- Breastfeeding: “Making a Difference” Level 2
- SickKids Paediatric ID Update 2024

HIV Testing Guidelines

Identifying new and chronic infections through risk assessment and testing is our best approach to address the HIV epidemic. Ontario Guidelines, published in 2023, identify four prongs of testing to ensure that fewer people remain undiagnosed.

Find new/ recent infections: Recognize the signs and symptoms of acute HIV infection and provide testing at appropriate intervals for people who report a possible recent high-risk exposure.
Find chronic infections: Recognize the indicator conditions most commonly overlooked in people with HIV who are diagnosed late (i.e. with more advanced disease).
Offer testing to members of populations with higher rates of HIV: Assess members of these populations for factors that may increase their risk and recommend testing when/as appropriate.
Identify patients who should be tested for HIV: This group includes people seeking pregnancy care and people being treated for conditions that require immunosuppressive therapy (e.g. transplants, treatment with biologics for conditions like rheumatoid arthritis).

Offering routine HIV testing to your patients can improve treatment outcomes. For patients that test negative, the ‘status neutral’ position suggests it is not the end of a clinical intervention but an opportunity to discuss HIV risk reduction techniques. These include medication for pre-exposure prophylaxis.

Cognitive Behavioural Therapy program for parents

In Canada, 1 in 5 parents report experiencing anxiety or depression during or after pregnancy. Without proper care, postpartum mood changes can negatively impact both the parent and child.

Public Health offers a FREE group-based Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) program for parents with babies up to 18 months old who are dealing with postpartum anxiety and depression. This virtual 9-week program provides weekly sessions with a public health nurse, where participants learn skills and coping strategies to manage their symptoms.

The next CBT class begins Thursday, October 24. If you have patients who would benefit from this group based program, please refer using the online Family Health Referral form or print and fax. Patients can also self-register by calling 905-684-7555, signing up online or using the Niagara Parents live chat tool.

Home Visiting Programs

Public Health offers two free home visiting programs delivered by a public health nurse to support families from the prenatal period through the child's transition to school.

Healthy Babies Healthy Children program

Focus is on supporting children in reaching their full potential and helping families learn about attachment, child development, positive parenting, healthy nutrition and taking care of themselves. This program is open to pregnant individuals of any age and families who have children under school age who, through assessment and review of antenatal records, would benefit from receiving extra parenting support.

Nurse-Family Partnership program

Aims to improve prenatal health, child health and development and self-sufficiency of the family. Eligibility for this program includes young (<25 years), pregnant individuals (28 weeks gestation or less) who are parenting for the first time and economically and socially disadvantaged. Visits are conducted from pregnancy through the child’s second birthday.

If you have a patient who would benefit from a home visit, complete the Family Health Referral form online or print and fax. Patients can also self-refer by contacting Niagara Parents.

National Infection Control Week is October 14 - 18

National Infection Control Week is a time to recognize and celebrate the work done by professionals in the field of infection prevention and control (IPAC) and remind everyone of the importance of IPAC in the community.

Public Health Ontario provides resources to help health care professionals understand and implement IPAC practices. These include:

IPAC organizational risk assessment for clinical office practice. This resource provides a step-by-step approach for identifying and managing IPAC organizational risks in clinical office practices. Use this form to complete your organizational risk assessment.
IPAC checklist for clinical office practice - core elements. This resource helps clinical office practices in examining, evaluating (for example, self-assessment) and comparing their current practices using provincial recommendations.
Guidance on the use of multidose vials

Please visit our website for more IPAC resources. Thank you for your commitment and dedication to preventing infections all year long!

New Measles Resources

Public Health Ontario (PHO) has published two new measles resources that are intended to support health system stakeholders in their ongoing measles preparedness and response activities:

Infection Prevention and Control (IPAC) Checklist for Clinics and Specimen Collection Centres: designed to assist IPAC leads in assessing their organizational readiness for preventing and managing measles exposures in clinics and specimen collection centres.
Post-exposure Prophylaxis (PEP) for Contacts: provides information on PEP for individuals identified as a contact of a case of measles, including considerations and advice regarding the use of vaccine and immunoglobulin in measles PEP.

As a reminder, if you suspect measles in a patient:

Report immediately to Public Health. Call: 905-688-8248 ext. 7330 (toll free: 1-888-505-6074). After-hours, please call 905-984-3690.
Call PHO’s Laboratory Customer Service Centre: 416-235-6556 or 1-877-604-4567
Collect all required specimens for testing (polymerase chain reaction in nasopharyngeal/throat swab AND urine, as well as diagnostic serology).

Addressing Vaccine Hesitancy

Public Health is conducting a survey looking to understand your experiences with vaccine hesitancy, and how to support you in caring for vaccine hesitant patients.

Last call for responses! Please complete this 5 minute survey by September 30 to tell us what kind of resource would be most helpful for you in practice.

Breastfeeding “Making a Difference” Level 2

Niagara Region Public Health is hosting a FREE 2-day virtual (LIVE) workshop series for community health care professionals and hospital staff practicing in Niagara who currently work with expectant or new parents and families.

This series will take place over Zoom on November 18 and 25, 2024 from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Participants must attend both session dates and may be eligible to receive IBLCE CERPS (Continuing Education Recognition Points).

Deadline to register is November 8!

Keynote Speaker:

Kathleen O’Grady is a registered nurse and an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC). Please see: Breastfeeding: Making a Difference Level 2 Workshop, for her additional credentials.

Key Topics

Effective assessment and management skills by applying current research, using complex case studies and group problem solving to formulate care plans to deal with challenging situations
Effective breastfeeding promotion in a multi-cultural society
Infant-parent attachment
Ethics
Evaluating research, training materials and research

Requirements:

Have completed the Breastfeeding Level 1 training (or an equivalent) within the past three years
Must be a health care practitioner practicing in the Niagara region

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SickKids Paediatric ID Update 2024

This is an accredited virtual conference aimed at providing evidence-informed, practical sessions for health practitioners caring for children. This conference is particularly topical in the light of new vaccines for pneumococcal disease, new ways of preventing RSV, and the ongoing concern with emerging and re-emerging infections.

Date: Saturday, October 5, 2024.

Cost: $40 for regular registration and $25 for trainees

Please see flyer for more details.

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Visit the Professional Development Opportunities page for more in-person and online opportunities available to health care professionals in Niagara.

Medical Advisories & Memos

MEMO: September 24 - Influenza Activity in Niagara
MEMO: September 19 - 2025 Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) Prevention Programs in Ontario
MEDICAL ADVISORY: September 18 - First Human Case of West Nile Virus (WNV)
MEMO: August 28 - Mpox Vaccination
MEDICAL ADVISORY: August 12 - Recent Pertussis Cases in Niagara
MEMO: August 7 - Rabies Risk and Reporting Animal Bites and Scratches within Niagara Region

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