No Images? Click here In This Issue - March 2018
IPAC Policies and ProceduresTo support our local health care providers with their efforts to practice infection prevention and control (IPAC) to the highest standards, we are pleased to briefly discuss policies and procedures. It is your responsibility as an employer to provide established policies and procedures to protect the health and safety of both your employees and patients in your clinical setting. IPAC policies and procedures should be based on
Policies should
Policies and procedures must
Policies and procedures may include, but are not limited to, the following areas:
Health care providers should be made aware of IPAC policies and procedures. A system for monitoring staff compliance with IPAC policies and procedures should be developed and implemented. For additional information on IPAC for Clinical Office practice, refer to www.publichealthontario.ca Positive Tuberculin Skin Test ReportingPositive Tuberculin Skin Tests (TST) are generally reportable to Niagara Region Public Health by the health care provider reading the skin test. Positive TSTs can be reported by fax, phone, and online:
Reading/Interpretation of Tuberculin Skin TestsWhen reading and interpreting the result of a TST, the following factors and criteria need to be considered:
Source: www.cdc.gov ResourcesAdditional Tuberculosis resources and information can be found on the Niagara Region website, as well as within the Canadian Tuberculosis Standards. REMINDER: Report Publicly Funded Vaccine Product DefectsHealth care providers are reminded to report any product defects related to Ontario’s publicly funded vaccines to Niagara Region Public Health. When reporting defective vaccine products please provide the following details:
To report defective vaccine products contact Niagara Region Public Health, Vaccine Preventable Disease program at 1-888-505-6074 or 905-688-8248 ext. 7425 Monday to Friday 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Healthy Growth Initiative - Better Outcomes Registry & Network The Better Outcomes Registry & Network (BORN), Ontario's prescribed maternal, newborn and child registry, is leading the development and implementation of a provincial system to obtain accurate and timely information on pediatric growth parameters from the Electronic Medical Records (EMR) of primary care providers. The goal of this initiative, called the Healthy Growth Initiative, is to collect comprehensive data on children from birth to 18 years of age in order to assist health care providers, public health units, and policy makers in the promotion and support of a healthy lifestyle for all children in the province. The success of the Healthy Growth Initiative requires participation by primary care providers, including nurse practitioners and family health teams, to share data that currently exists in their EMRs with BORN. BORN has already partnered with many primary care providers across the province, but additional support is required to ensure a representative sample of children is captured to accurately reflect the larger pediatric population across Ontario. For more information on BORN and the Healthy Growth Initiative, please visit www.bornontario.ca SURVEILLANCE UPDATE: Influenza Declining
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