How can you collaborate with physicians to prevent hospital-acquired infections?

1 Communication skills

Communication is essential for any successful collaboration, especially when it comes to infection prevention and control. You need to communicate clearly, respectfully, and timely with physicians and other team members about the patient's condition, treatment plan, and infection status. You also need to provide feedback, ask questions, and report any concerns or issues that may affect the patient's safety or quality of care. Communication can be verbal, written, or electronic, depending on the situation and the available tools. You should use standardized formats, such as SBAR (situation, background, assessment, recommendation), to ensure consistency and accuracy of information.

2 Care coordination

Care coordination is the process of organizing and integrating the services and resources that a patient needs across different settings and providers. It involves planning, monitoring, evaluating, and adjusting the care plan according to the patient's needs and preferences. Care coordination can help prevent HAIs by ensuring that the patient receives the appropriate tests, treatments, and follow-ups, and that the infection prevention and control measures are consistent and compatible among different providers. You can collaborate with physicians and other team members to coordinate care by sharing information, setting goals, identifying roles and responsibilities, and resolving conflicts or gaps in care.

3 Education and training

Education and training are vital for keeping yourself and others updated on the latest evidence and guidelines on infection prevention and control. You can collaborate with physicians and other team members to educate and train yourself and others by attending or organizing educational sessions, workshops, or webinars on HAIs and their prevention strategies. You can also access online resources, such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website, to learn more about HAIs and their causes, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention. You can also educate and train your patients and their families on how to prevent HAIs by providing them with clear and simple instructions, materials, and support.

4 Hand hygiene

Hand hygiene is one of the most effective and simple ways to prevent HAIs. It involves washing your hands with soap and water or using an alcohol-based hand sanitizer before and after any contact with patients, their environment, or any equipment or devices that may be contaminated. You can collaborate with physicians and other team members to promote hand hygiene by modeling the correct behavior, reminding and encouraging each other to perform hand hygiene, and providing feedback and recognition for good hand hygiene practices. You can also monitor and audit hand hygiene compliance and report any barriers or challenges that may prevent you from performing hand hygiene.

6 Environmental cleaning

Environmental cleaning is the process of removing dirt, dust, and microorganisms from the surfaces and objects in the patient's room and other areas of the hospital. It involves using appropriate cleaning agents, tools, and techniques to disinfect or sterilize the environment and prevent the spread of infection. You can collaborate with physicians and other team members to ensure environmental cleaning by following the standard operating procedures and checklists, using the correct personal protective equipment, and disposing of the waste properly. You can also communicate and coordinate with the environmental services staff to ensure that the cleaning frequency, quality, and coverage are adequate and consistent.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?