3 advantages of your own expert infection prevention

Infection prevention has been an important theme at Argos Zorggroep for years, according to manager Nicoline van der Hagen. And even more so since corona. ‘I will never forget how visitors had to remain outside the walls of the nursing home. And their loved ones alone in their room behind the window. Since then, the words “close a house” have had a lot of meaning behind them. Never again! That’s partly why we wanted to have an infection prevention expert (DI) in-house.’

Edward already worked at Argos Zorggroep as a higher professional nurse and started training to become a DI in 2022. He worked 3 days a week at Franciscus Gasthuis & Vlietland. This is a recognized workplace from the Healthcare Training College (CZO). Nicoline already worked with this hospital. During the training, Edward worked 1 day a week at Argos Zorggroep as a DI. Now that he has a diploma, the distribution of working days has been reversed. This means that he now works 3 days at Argos Zorggroep and 1 day in the hospital.

What are the 3 advantages of your own expert infection prevention?

1. Customized advice and instructions

He brings current knowledge from participation in projects, such as good hand hygiene or proper use of gloves from, for example, the ABR network, into consultations and the infection prevention committee. He also brings new knowledge, useful protocols and laboratory results from the hospital. He translates this knowledge and information to nursing home care.

An example: According to the guidelines, you have an outbreak with 2 infected residents and you must close a department to prevent spread. Edward: ‘We look at what is still possible with customization. Can we possibly work with face masks, so that someone can still go outside?’

This way he can quickly provide tailor-made advice to the various departments about infection prevention policy. Or he can have them look at each other to see how the other has organized something. Because he knows the nursing homes and departments well, he can also take construction influences into account. Or give advice about a cleaning agent that, for example, a resident’s cupboard can withstand.

Edward: ‘I am close to direct care and can respond to the problems at that moment or visit personally. In elderly care it also works well to try out a lot and see how you can change the behavior of employees. We are already becoming more aware that as employees we are the biggest spreaders.’

2. Qualitative improvement of care and treatments

An employed DI ensures continuity, allowing you to achieve qualitative improvements in care and treatment. Nicoline: ‘Thanks to the collaboration with the hospital, we can call on the infection prevention department of the hospital. For example, if Edward is absent for a longer period of time.

Examples of improvements include updates to the infection prevention manual and infection prevention policies to reduce the number of outbreaks. Edward: ‘This year, for the first time, there were 2 nursing homes with a completely positive hygiene scan! In previous years they still scored shortcomings in 4 to 5 areas.’

With the hygiene scan you score on 30 components. This is also called an audit. Examples of parts:

• employee hygiene
• storage of sterile materials
• HACCP of the department kitchens, this concerns risk assessment for foodstuffs

Most information also arrives first at the hospital, for example about an increase in a virus. Edward: ‘Thanks to the contacts, we already saw an increase in influenza A in the Schiedam and Rotterdam region, before the RIVM warned of an epidemic. I was able to advise our own doctors early on to expand their PCR testing policy and to be alert to basic hygiene.’

3. Registration of MRSA upon entry

The training put Edward on track to gain insight into which residents and employees could be carriers of MRSA. MRSA is a skin bacteria.

You can identify the carriers through a risk inventory for new residents and employees, which you preferably register centrally. Finally, an MRSA outbreak also affects central activities for several departments.

The most important thing is to prevent people from having to stay in their rooms because they are contagious. Nicoline: ‘How do you explain that if, for example, someone no longer knows that a cup is a cup due to advanced dementia? That’s not possible. The consequences must be as small as possible for the residents.’