Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare This March 2021 NFID (National Foundation for Infectious Diseases) report is well worth your time to review.  It’s 20 pages packed with pertinent information and infographics. “By definition, a pandemic is the worldwide spread of a new disease. In this environment, new scientific discoveries and evolving…… Continue reading COVID-19 Communications: Promoting Prevention Measures and Vaccine Confidence

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare Two (2) new fact sheets on sharps disposal containers address supply shortages and reducing needlestick injuries for vaccinators and others assisting at COVID-19 vaccination sites.   CDC provided these fact sheets on March 30, 2021. Below are the printable PDFs/infographs of both fact sheets found beneath each…… Continue reading Updated CDC Information: Sharps Disposal During Shortages and Mass Vaccination Campaigns

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare CMS posted county positivity rates for April 5, 2021. As part of CMS’ commitment to protecting nursing home residents, and to boost the surveillance of COVID-19, nursing homes are now required to conduct testing of residents and staff.  More information about these requirements and guidelines can…… Continue reading CMS Posts County Positivity – April 5, 2021

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare The latest in a series of headlines comes from my home state – Iowa.  Like you, I’ve been seeing a growing number of reports showing states incorrectly calculated COVID-19 infections in LTC facilities. Keeping track of data over the past 13+ months has been difficult, to…… Continue reading Iowa Discloses Long-withheld Data Showing Miscalculated Nursing Home Infections

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare CMS has posted COVID-19 nursing home data for week ending March 21, 2021. CDC data as of March 31, 2021 … 6am (ET): Here’s a snippet of state-specific data (use same CDC hyperlink as above). You can download the full data table when on that website. …… Continue reading CMS, CDC and NHSN Current COVID-19 Data Posted

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare This list provides the names, locations and contact information (emails) for the pharmacies enrolled in the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program to provide the COVID-19 vaccine. Jurisdictions can contact these federal pharmacy partners to request a transfer to allocate vaccines to long-term care facility staff and residents…… Continue reading LTC Pharmacies Participating in the Federal Retail Pharmacy Program

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare Two new resources from AHRQ are part of the agency’s ongoing efforts to protect nursing home residents and staff from COVID-19. Both are intended to support the use of observational audits, which help facilities understand if staff members are fully complying with infection prevention practices: Competency…… Continue reading New AHRQ Nursing Home Resources Aimed at Preventing COVID-19

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDP Clinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare Interim Infection Prevention and Control Recommendations to Prevent SARS-CoV-2 Spread in Nursing Homes and LTCFs was updated March 29, 2021. US COVID-19 Cases Caused by Variants was updated March 30, 2021. Evidence used to update the list of underlying medical conditions that increase a person’s risk…… Continue reading CDC Updated COVID-19 Information – Late March 2021

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare The next 2 slides say it all – we have reason to be very grateful for the COVID-19 vaccine: These slides and 5 others are part of a March 30, 2021 AHCA-NCAL Report.  Take a look at the announcement posted in Provider Magazine.  I cite this…… Continue reading New Report: NH COVID-19 Cases Down 96% Since December 20, 2020

Mary Madison, RN, RAC-CT, CDPClinical Consultant – Briggs Healthcare In a CDC Press Release on Monday, March 29, 2021 provided some very welcome, good news: “A new CDC study provides strong evidence that mRNA COVID-19 vaccines are highly effective in preventing SARS-CoV-2 infections in real-world conditions among health care personnel, first responders, and other essential…… Continue reading CDC Real-World Study Confirms Protective Benefits of mRNA COVID-19 Vaccines