Responsibilities in
a) Chairman
Approves the nominated chairperson and member of the
Infection Control Committee
Appoints a representative of Hospital management to be
a member of the infection Control Committee.
Authorizes the Infection Control Committee to
institute appropriate control measures and/or studies.
Encourages the participants of Hospital staff in the
Infection Control Program
b) Departments, Divisions, Units and Services
Develop,
review, revise and propose infection control policies and procedures specific
to their functions, in consultation with the Microbiologist.
Submit
proposed infection control policies to the Microbiologist for
review, comment and approval by the Infection control Committee.
Address
preventive methods, which pertain to their function.
Implement
infection control policies and procedures within their area of responsibility.
Ensures that
their personnel adhere to the Hospital Employee Health Program.
Inform the
Microbiologist of any potential or identified infection control problems.
Provide
infection control in-service education to their personnel in conjunction with
the Microbiologist and Infection Control Nurse.
c) Infection Control Committee Representatives:
Provide
personnel in their area with infection control activity reports in order to
ensure staff awareness to current problems.
d) Infection Control Officer (ICO):
Serves as a
permanent core member of the Infection Control Committee.
Coordinates
the field-wide implementation of the Hospital Infection Control Program.
Supervises the
accurate collection of infection control data and participation in the analysis
of the data; prepares summary report for the Infection Control Committee.
Informs
Hospital staff of new developments in infection control and acts as a
professional resource regarding state-of-the-art development.
Conducts
prospective prevalence studies periodically to evaluate the effectiveness of
the surveillance system.
Serves on or
consults with committee in-charge of evaluating procedures or equipment, which
has an impact on infection control activities.
Coordinates
and assists with employee orientation and in-service education program related
to infection control.
Collaborates
with all departments in the development, review and revision of infection
control manual.
Acts as a
consultant regarding infection control issues.
e) Nursing Staff
Adhere to the Infection Control policies and procedures.
Know the nursing functions essential to the
prevention, recognition and management of infection.
Adhere to measures of Infection Control, including
hand washing and isolation techniques.
Report any signs of infection to the attending
physician/surgeon and record the findings in the nurse's notes.
Alert Infection Control nurse of suspected or
confirmed infections.
Institute isolation or precautionary measures when an
infectious disease is suspected; inform the attending physician/surgeon as soon
as possible.
Participate, in orientation and continuing education programs for infection control.
f) Clinical Laboratory
Provide laboratory support for infection control
activities.
Provide environmental evaluation of medical facilities
and operations in co-operation with Infection Control.