Poor injections practices harm patients.
That statement seems self-evident, but despite all the progress we have made since the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) launched its “One and Only” campaign, patients are still being harmed by poor practices. A study published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings shows that between 2012 and 2018, more than 66,000 patients were notified of possible exposure to blood-borne pathogens because of unsafe injection practices. More recently, a Washington state-based healthcare system notified over two thousand patients of potential exposure to hepatitis B, hepatitis C and HIV due to an anesthesiologist not following infection control practices.
How does your healthcare facility ensure patient safety and mitigate injection risks? Do you have policies and procedures addressing safe injection practices based on nationally-recognized guidelines? Are you following your policies — and who is guiding and monitoring your compliance? AAAHC standards specifically state that written policies must be in place for safe use of injectables and single-use syringes and needles; deficiencies in safe injection practices directly place patients at risk and are a huge potential liability for organizations.
In this week’s client newsletter, we’ll highlight some deficient infection control practices, give examples of practices we never want to see at our centers and discuss how your pharmacy consultant can support your facility’s safe injection practices.
The Consultant Pharmacists at OctariusRx provide guidance on safe medication management, survey readiness and cost savings to ambulatory healthcare facilities/surgery centers, senior care facilities and pharmacies. We also help individual patients optimize their medications to improve their quality of life and save money. Contact us for assistance.
