The Eastern Washington Area Health Education Center hosted a Continuing Education session titled “Infection Prevention: Best Practices for Nurses” on Wednesday, October 18, 2017. Watch it online!
This Enduring Material activity, Infection Prevention Series, has been reviewed and is acceptable for credit by the American Academy of Family Physicians. Term of approval begins 12/01/2017. Term of approval is for one year from this date. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.
To claim your credit, watch the video and notify Krista Loney (kloney83@ewu.edu) to obtain your CME certificate.
Presenters:
Sara Podczervinksi, RN, MPH, CIC, FAPIC
Healthcare Associated Infections Program Manager
Washington State Department of Health
sara.podczervinski@doh.wa.gov /(206) 418-5519
Sara Podczervinski, RN, MPH, CIC, FAPIC obtained her Bachelors in Science and Nursing (BSN) from Western Michigan University in 1999 and her Master’s in Public Health (MPH) from the University of Michigan in 2002. In her early career, Sara worked as a communicable disease and bioterrorism epidemiologist for local and state public health in Washington State. In 2005, Sara began working at the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance as an Infection Preventionist (IP), where her work focused on infection prevention in outpatient oncology care, specifically for blood and marrow transplant (BMT) and solid tumor malignancy patients. In 2012, her IP team received the Qualis Health Award in Excellence for their work in fungal prevention during construction. In 2014, Sara was awarded the Infection Prevention Hero Award at National Association for Prevention in Infection Control (APIC) for her work in respiratory virus prevention. Her work has been published in infection control and epidemiology journals, including projects on healthcare worker influenza vaccination programs, respiratory virus outbreak investigations, Clostridium difficile, and legionella. In January 2015, Sara went back to her public health roots and currently oversees the Healthcare Associated Infections (HAI) Program for the Washington State Department of Health. Over the years, Sara has been an active member of Puget Sound APIC, severing on the Board as president, secretary, and webmaster. She has been Certified in Infection Control (CIC) since 2006. In June 2016, Sara received fellowship designation through National APIC.
Patricia Montgomery, RN, MPH, CIC
Healthcare Associated Infections Nurse Consultant
Washington State Department of Health
patricia.montgomery@doh.wa.gov /(206) 418-5558
Patty Montgomery obtained her nursing education at New Hampshire Technical Institute in Concord New Hampshire, her Bachelors in the Humanities and Master’s in Public Health at the University of Washington in Seattle Washington. She has 20 + years of experience working in various critical care and perioperative environments at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. In 2011, Patty began working as an Infection Preventionist and Employee Health Nurse for UW Medicine Neighborhood Clinics. In 2015, Patty joined the HAI Team at the Washington State Department of Health, where she leads their infection prevention outreach efforts and provides assistance to facilities and local heath jurisdictions to evaluate and respond to breaches in infection control. Patty is a leader in her field and is the current President-Elect for the Association for the Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC). She has been certified in infection control (CIC) since 2016.
Learning Objectives:
- Discuss the nurses role in infection prevention for the rural health clinic
- List four essential elements of an infection prevention program
- Describe the importance of conducting an infection prevention risk assessment in outpatient rural settings
- Describe the unique infection risks in an outpatient environment
