Medical Expert Suggests Precautions Health Care Workers Can Take To Prevent Spread Of Swine Flu

By Annie Berman

In a panel discussion held at the Institute of Medicine on Thursday, doctors and researchers suggested that disposable respirators, hand hygiene stations, and protective eye wear be used by health care workers to prevent the spread of the H1N1 virus, also known as swine flu.

Leonard Mermel, Medical Director at the Department of Epidemiology and Infection Control at Rhode Island Hospital, described cough etiquette stations that his hospital is using to prevent the spread of infection. These stations have hand sanitizer dispensers, face masks, and instructions for cough etiquette, and are located at every entrance to the hospital building.

“[We need] to do a better job of educating our health care workers as well as the patients and families and why it’s important for them to for example, don a mask, how to do it, why it’s important for them to do hand hygiene. This can’t be overemphasized,” said Mermel.

As for other ways to combat the spread of infection, Mermel suggested that health care workers across the country undergo daily screening for fever and other respiratory symptoms before they begin their shifts. He also suggested that hospitals be properly ventilated and that building temperatures remain at 68 degrees and relative indoor humidity be raised to 50%.

The first outbreak of swine flu was reported in Mexico this past spring and cases of the virus have been reported in the United States and abroad since. For more information on the H1N1 virus visit www.cdc.gov/H1N1.

Nursing in Critical Condition

Coffee Brown, University of New Mexico, for Talk Radio News Service

Susan Reinhard, of AARP’s Public Policy Institute helped found the new Champion Nursing Coalition in response a critical and worsening shortage. Thousands of qualified prospective students are being turned away from nursing programs for lack of enrollment capacity, she said. At the same time, she continued, there will be a deficit of 500,000 to a million nurses by 2025.

John Lumpkin, MD, MPH, of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation described a few of the many roles nurses fill, clinical, social, chronic care, and administrative. He called the shortage unprecedented.

There is some good news, however, according to Nancy LeaMond Ex. VP at AARP. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) polls show overwhelming positive ratings and public support for the profession. AHRQ is a federal agency tasked with studies of healthcare improvement.

Citing Institute of Medicine Studies, Nancy Reller, representing Consumers Advancing Patient Safety, said that understaffing of nurses is associated with worse outcomes.

Jerald Newberry, for the National Education Association, said that asthma, obesity, and diabetes are so common in elementary schools that every one of them should have a nurse, but that many do not.

The panel recommends that funds be used to expand nursing programs, which would require about twice as many instructors as now. As it stands, about half of current instructors are expected to retire over the next decade.