• Saves you time from doing research, reading and interpreting regulatory and accrediting
   body requirements and writing policies!
• Written by co-author of Infection Control in Home Care and Hospice books and former Joint
   Commission surveyor
• Updated annually

Preview the Table of Contents and the Conditions of Purchase.

List Price $349.00 #IC1017


Infection Control Plan
A written Infection Control Plan is required by organizations that are accredited by The Joint Commission in standard IC.1.10 EP 9 in the 2007 Comprehensive Accreditation Manual for Home Care. This Infection Control Plan can be customized specifically to reflect your home care and hospice organization's scope of services.

Hand Hygiene
In home care and hospice, the staff member's hands are the greatest potential source for the transmission of potentially infectious organisms. To focus ongoing attention on the issue of hand hygiene, The Joint Commission has continued to include hand hygiene compliance in its publicly reported 2007 National Patient Safety Goals (NPSG). These policies will guide your staff's hand hygiene practices to assure they follow the category 1A, 1B and 1C recommendations from the CDC's Guideline for Hand Hygiene in Health-Care Settings and meet NPSG 7A.

Bloodborne Pathogen Exposure Control Plan
OSHA requires that each home care and hospice organization have a written Bloodborne Pathogen Exposure Control Plan that is evaluated and updated on an annual basis. This plan meets CDC Guidelines, federal OSHA requirements, and contains required content and forms, as well as a template for documenting the annual review of the bloodborne pathogen exposure control plan.

Medical Waste Management Plan
The Joint Commission requires that organizations create and maintain an inventory of hazardous materials and waste used, stored, or generated. Home care organizations are required to establish and implement processes for selecting, handling, storing, transporting, using, and disposing of infectious and regulated medical wastes, including sharps. This Medical Waste Management Plan guides your staff's practices to assure they meet federal OSHA requirements and The Joint Commission's Infection Control and Equipment Management standards for medical waste generated by staff in the course of providing care in the home.

Respiratory Protection Plan
OSHA requires that each home care and hospice organization have a written Respiratory Protection Plan to protect its employees. The Respiratory Protection Plan is based on the revised CDC Guidelines for Preventing the Transmission of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in Health-Care Settings, 2005 and has been adapted for care in the home setting. The Respiratory Protection Plan addresses the tuberculin skin testing, fit testing, and conducting a TB risk assessment. The plan also includes forms to document the annual TB risk assessment findings and document competence assessment activities for staff administering and reading the TST.

Isolation Precautions
Adhering to standard and transmission-based precautions is an important component to patient safety. You can improve your patient's outcomes by preventing the acquisition and transmission of potentially infectious agents by following transmission-based precautions in the home. The Isolation Precautions policies also include precautions your staff should take when caring for a patient with multidrug-resistant organisms, such as MRSA, VRE and includes guidelines for caring for a patient with known or suspected pandemic or avian influenza in the home.

Cleaning and Disinfection
Minimizing the risk of transmitting infections associated with the use of equipment, devices and procedures during home care is key to preventing the transmission of potentially infectious agents. The cleaning and disinfection policies and procedures will guide your staff on measures to prevent and control the transmission of microorganisms by appropriately cleaning and disinfecting equipment used in patient care, including bag technique.

Surveillance, Identification and Reporting of Infections
Home care organizations are required by accrediting bodies to monitor for and measure the occurrence of home care-acquired infections in an effort to determine whether their infection prevention and control procedures were effective. These policies and procedures will help you establish a framework in which to identify and report patient infections, perform home care surveillance activities and meet regulatory and accrediting body standards for home care surveillance.