Infection Control Nurse

Job Summary

The Infection Control Nurse (ICN) functions closely in collaboration with the Infectious Disease Medical Staff and under the direct/indirect supervision from the Infection Control Manager who directs the overall strategy and implementation of the Infection Control activities. He/she is responsible for the surveillance and reporting of nosocomial infections, investigation of infection or clusters of infections as, microbiological monitoring of the healthcare environment and remediation as warranted, targeted education, consultation, research, administration and continued professional development. ICN efforts impact nearly all hospital departments, services and disciplines in order to control the spread of nosocomial infection as well as costs associated with such infections.

Minimum Qualifications

Minimum Education: Bachelor of Science in Nursing
Minimum Years of Experience: 5 years of experience in a combination of Acute Care Nursing, Epidemiology, or Infection Prevention and Control. At least 2 years must be in Infection Prevention and Control.

Substitutable Education & Experience: None.
Required Certifications/Licensure: Currently licensed as a Registered Nurse by the South Carolina State Board of Nursing;

Certification in Infection Control and Epidemiology (or attainment within 2 years of entry date into role).
Required Training: Experience in EPIC or Healthcare Databases, and Data Abstraction Experience.

Essential Functions

• Perform surveillance of nosocomial infections, as well as targeted surveillance in problem areas, such as targeted environmental microbiological events. (Accurately identify, use aggregate data, graphically trend, present to areas such as the Infection Control Committee, and conduct investigations using appropriate/defined methodology).
• Use surveillance data, federal and professional guidelines, peer-reviewed journals, etc. to review, revise and develop effective policies in order to minimize the impact of nosocomial infections on LMC patients and staff members.
• Analyze and distribute monthly and quarterly surveillance data to the Infection Control Committee and quarterly unit-specific and service-specific infection reports to the medical staff, nursing staff and the quality, safety and innovations department.
• Routinely interact with personnel from all departments which provide direct or indirect patient care or whose responsibilities impact on materials utilized by patients.
• Drive educational efforts aimed at heightening awareness of nosocomial infection, how to minimize infection among patients, and how to minimize occupational risks of infection are presented to employees as well as to more specifically targeted occupational subgroups. Actively participate in continuing medical education programs sponsored by LMC and other institutions.
• Acts as a community resource and has routine interaction with outside individuals from varied patient care and public health disciplines who seek information, advice or guidance in solving problems related to the control of infection.
• Plan and participate in ongoing applied research, in conjunction with the Medical Staff and other members of the Infection Control team, to include study design, data analysis, writing reports or publications and presentations. Occasionally called upon to provide information for media sources (radio, television, newspapers) pertaining to the prevention of community acquired infections.
• Provide physician-specific lists of patients with nosocomial infection and surgeon-specific surgical wound infection rates to appropriate medical staff leadership for review and analysis regarding clinical practice.
• Monitor trends in unusual or resistant organisms (community-acquired or nosocomial) for evidence of spread to other patients, visitors, or employees. Notify the local public health agencies and/or the SC DHEC of reportable diseases in collaboration with physicians, as required by state statute.
• Assume responsibility for pursuing necessary updating of computerized surveillance and isolation systems.
• Coordinate among unit staff, physicians, Microbiology Laboratory to collect appropriate cultures from patients and/or employees to assess colonization status and attack rate.
• Assist other departments, agencies, and personnel, including medical staff, to develop appropriate patient care protocols and guidelines, as well as educational programs dealing with infection control. Evaluates and determines the merit of staff suggestions pertaining to infection control.
• Be available to provide consultative services in infection control for all personnel, including physicians and department leaders, as well as infection control practitioners and other professionals.

Duties & Responsibilities

• Cooperate with public health agencies in order to provide them with pertinent patient information which is necessary for the completion of epidemiologic investigations and community-wide epidemic control.
• Help develop and implement plans to achieve departmental and organizational goals and objectives.
• Coordinate the evaluation, development and implementation of patient care policies and procedures for prevention of nosocomial infection.
• Monitor compliance of personnel with isolation technique and other infection control procedures that relate to prevention of infection in patients and/or employees and establish corrective action when indicated.
• When necessary, exercise vested authority to independently place patients in isolation or modify existing procedures in the event of extenuating circumstances, taking into account the epidemiologic aspects of transmission of the disease.
• Assure adherence to infection control standards of external agencies such as DNV, DHEC and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
• Integrate infection control into the LMC Quality Improvement Program.
• Remain current regarding changes in authoritative guidelines which impact upon the control of infection (e.g., OSHA blood borne pathogen rule, guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) and facilitate employee compliance with these guidelines by updating LMC policies, coordinating education efforts, etc..
• Effectively serve on relevant committees as a source of accurate information in order to facilitate implementation of the wide-ranging aspects of infection control across departments and activities.
• Assist with the development and evaluation of the annual Infection Control Plan.
• Research:a. Review infection control procedures and conduct necessary studies to support changes in policies and procedures that can reduce health care costs without compromising quality of care. Assist with the implementation of such changes.b. Lead process improvement efforts related to infection control.c. Accurately identify aspects of organizational practices which may impact disease transmission which are amenable to investigation.
• Professional Development:a. Maintain strong professional knowledge in clinical infectious diseases, nosocomial infection control, epidemiology and statistics, clinical microbiology and management techniques by keeping abreast of literature in these areas and by participation in postgraduate education programs and relevant conferences.b. Effectively use electronic, text, and professional resources to find current, accurate information relating to nosocomial infections and apply new information to the practice of nosocomial infection control.
• Performs all other duties as assigned or required.