Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) represents a significant hazard for healthcare workers, particularly those working in high-risk domains such as hospitals dealing with drug-resistant pathogens like Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Vancomycin-resistant Enterococci. Its threat goes beyond merely exposing these workers to these bacteria but permeates the entire healthcare environment. It is often overlooked as a critical issue…
In recent news, healthcare infection prevention professionals have been faced with dramatic changes due to the disbanding of a key federal advisory committee that held noteworthy contributions in the prevention of healthcare-related infections. The Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee (HICPAC), which was disbanded by the Trump administration, was instrumental in establishing national standards that…
China's National Administration of Disease Control and Prevention (NADCP) recently issued directives out of concern for potential spring outbreaks of respiratory illnesses, following a winter reported to have unusually high instances of severe respiratory infections by locals. One such directive titled 'Preventing and Controlling Key Infectious Diseases such as COVID-19 Infection in the Spring of…
The Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) has raised alarms against the Department of Health and Human Services' (HHS) proposal to repeal the Richardson Waiver, a policy that enables public participation in rulemaking. In a notice published in the Federal Register, the HHS lays out its scheme to strip the public of…