June 2018 LTCF Newsletter

June 2018 Newsletter – Print version [PDF – 2 MB]

Register Now! 2018 NHSN LTCF Component Annual Training

Plan to join us July 16-18, 2018 for the 2018 National Healthcare Safety Network’s (NHSN) Annual Training for Long-term Care Facilities. The training will be held on the CDC campus in Atlanta, Georgia and will include a variety of topics such as antibiotic stewardship, hands on data analysis, surveillance and prevention for urinary tract infections, C. difficile, multi-drug resistant organisms, and more.

While there is no registration fee, participants will be responsible for all travel expenses to include transportation, lodging, and the cost of food and beverages. Capacity for the training is approximately 300 participants, and invitations to attend in-person will be issued on a first-come, first-serve basis. Therefore, we encourage you to register for the annual training as soon as possible. Continuing Education Units (CEUs) are available.

Register for the 2018 NHSN Long-term Care Facility Component Training in Atlanta, Ga., taking place at the CDC*.

Check out the agenda here [PDF – 300 KB].

*For those unable to attend in-person, all presentations during the three-day training will be available via live web-stream. Registration is NOT required for those participating via web-streaming. Please email NHSNtrain@cdc.gov , adding “LTC Annual Training” in the subject header with training-related questions.

What’s New to the 2018 NHSN LTCF Annual Training Registration

*Session A & B are concurrent courses and have a maximum capacity due to the number of computers available in the computer lab.

It is important to note:

1. You may only attend each hands-on session once. Example 1: If you register for Session B, on Monday, you may register for Session A, on Tuesday. OR Example 2: You cannot register for Session A on Monday AND Tuesday.
2. Space is limited. Therefore, registration for each session will be based on a lottery system after general training registration is closed.
3. We will notify you via email, if you qualify to attend one or both hands-on, lab sessions. You will also be invited to complete a separate registration process for the lab sessions.
4. PLEASE BRING YOUR OWN LAPTOP. Only one session, each day, will be located in an actual computer lab with CDC computers for usage.
5. Lab session A & B WILL NOT be web-streamed or recorded.

For those unable to attend in-person, all presentations (except for lab sessions) during the 3 days of the training will be available via live web-stream. Please email NHSNtrain@cdc.gov , adding “LTC Annual Training” in the subject header with training-related questions.

Two New Resources added to the NHSN LTCF Webpage

The NHSN Long-term Care Facility Component Manual [PDF – 2 MB] includes a wealth of information and resources relevant to NHSN surveillance and reporting.  The manual combines all of the NHSN LTCF protocols, data collection forms and table of instructions, and other great resources used by participating long-term care facilities. Save the document to your computer or print it for easy access.

The NHSN Long-term Care Facility Component Frequently Asked Questions [PDF – 150 KB] documents incorporates common questions we receive from our users with detailed responses.

**Please note that these updates can also be found in the Urinary Tract Infections module and the Process Measures – Hand Hygiene, Gloves and Gown Adherence module.

Check Out What’s New on the NHSN Training Page!
The NHSN Educational Roadmap

New to NHSN? The NHSN Educational Roadmaps will provide a guided tour of the training materials and information needed to provide a solid foundation of NHSN – from the basics to more advanced training for each individual component or protocol.

In each component there is a selection of educational and supplemental materials and tools to improve your comprehension of NHSN surveillance definitions, reporting, and analysis (while supporting your work as an NHSN user).  To begin this learning experience, select a component.

This training should be used after the enrollment/activation process. If you have not enrolled into NHSN please enroll here.

The Long-term Care Facility Component (LTC) Educational Roadmap has three (3) sections, LTC Foundation, Modules/Protocols and Analysis. For the best learning experience, start with the Long-term Care Foundation section and work your way down the list and complete each item. After you complete this section, select the LTC Modules/Protocols Training that best meets your practice needs followed by Analysis.

Reminder: NHSN Re-Consent Deadline is now July 9, 2018

Way to go! So far 76% of long-term care facilities have completed the re-consent process. Facilities that enrolled in NHSN before December 2, 2017, must accept the updated NHSN Consent. The NHSN assigned Facility Administrator or Primary Contact for the LTCF must agree to this updated Consent Form no later than July 9, 2018, to avoid losing access to NHSN. Guidance for Reviewing and Accepting NHSN’s Updated Agreement to Participate and Consent can be found here [PDF – 500 KB].

If a component has not agreed to the new consent form by the new July 9th deadline, its NHSN functionality will be disabled until the consent form is accepted by either the listed facility administrator or the listed component primary contact.

Additional information, including Frequently Asked Questions [PDF – 150 KB] and the updated NHSN purposes, are available on CDC’s NHSN website. If you have any questions, please send an email to NHSN@cdc.gov with the subject line “NHSN Re-consent.”

NOTE: Facilities that enrolled in NHSN on or after December 2, 2017, have already accessed this new Consent and will not need to accept it again if they have already done so.

APIC Annual Conference 2018, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Every year, thousands of healthcare professionals from around the world gather for three days to expand their network and learn about evidence-based advances in infection prevention.

The Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) Annual Conference is the premier forum for infection prevention and epidemiology professionals who want to learn about the latest research, science, and     real-world solutions to challenging infection prevention issues.

During the APIC Annual Conference, CDC staff presented on surveillance and prevention for LTCFs, including infection events reported to NHSN. More information about the APIC Annual Conference 2018 can be found here.

Presenter (s): Elisabeth Mungai, MS, MPH, Kathie Nichols BSN, RN, CRRN, Katie Pelofske, RN-BC

Presentation: Lessons from a National Nursing Home CDI Surveillance Partnership

Summary: In 2016, CDC and CMS joined efforts to improve surveillance and prevention of Clostridium difficile infections (CDI) among nursing homes through a collaborative project implemented through Quality Innovation Network-Quality Improvement Organizations (QIN-QIO). This session provided insights from the teams working with nursing homes to support their efforts to reporting CDI into National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) and shared perspectives from front-line providers involved in this initiative.