American Journal of Infection Control

Washrooms provide the perfect breeding ground for dangerous bacteria. Some studies showed that Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, and Salmonella sp. can survive on surfaces and hands for hours and even days after initial contact.1,2

On Wednesday, March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus known as SARS-CoV-2, a pandemic. SARS-CoV-2 is transmitted via respiratory droplets and has caused significant morbidity and

Hand hygiene (HH) is one of the most effective strategies to limit contact transmission of pathogenic microorganisms in health care facilities1,2 and to reduce health care-associated infections.3-5 Notwithstanding, compliance with HH guidelines has

The US is estimated to need 3.9 billion N95 masks to care for patients with COVID-19. As of March 3, the number of N95 masks in the United States stockpile was 35 million, accounting for less than 1% of estimated need.1 Hospitals are also limited in

Surgical site infections (SSIs) are the most common and one of the most costly hospital-acquired infections, (HAI) accounting for 20%-80% of HAIs.1-3 Postoperative spinal wound infections have been reported to occur in 1%- 19% of patients depending

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, personal protective equipment (PPE) became a household term as many citizens were made aware of its significance in order to reduce community spread, as well as protect health care workers (HCWs) on the front

Since the emergence of the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic in December 2019, COVID-19 cases have increased rapidly on a global level with the largest numbers of cases being in the United States (US).1 Clinical staff have been on the frontlines of the

Isolation precautions are vital to prevent spreading infectious diseases such as, Hepatitis B (HBV), Hepatitis C (HCV), AIDS (HIV), Ebola virus disease and the coronavirus disease 2019 (SARS-CoV-2). Health care personnel (HCP) are at the frontline in

This National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) surveillance case study is part of a case-study series in the American Journal of Infection Control (AJIC). These cases reflect some of the complex patient scenarios Infection preventionists (IPs) have

Long-term care (LTC) facilities are high-risk settings for transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the causative agent of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Given the high mortality rate associated with COVID