The Department of Health and Human Services has released information on the 2019 HCW influenza vaccination program. Click here to read more on the 2019 target, collection dates, support materials and more.
Read more...Maree Sommerville is the primary contact for the private hospital surveillance program. To assist with the implementation of HAI surveillance, education can be provided with site visits to your facility if required by contacting Maree.
Read more...The CPE TRA list has recently been updated on 5 March 2019
Read more...VICNISS has planned a series of educational webinars in March – June 2019. Please read on to see the list of topics, dates, times and a link to register for any webinar/s you wish to attend.
Read more...Several chapters/modules in the VICNISS manual have been reviewed and should be used commencing January 2019. Click on the link for a summary of changes.
Read more...A new resource is now available providing a guide to how VICNISS assess prophylactic antibiotics as either optimal, adequate, inadequate or unknown.
Read more...
VICNISS is a partner in the National Centre for Antimicrobial Stewardship (NCAS). The multiple areas of overlap between antimicrobial stewardship and infection control mean NCAS and VICNISS are working collaboratively on many joint projects.
Some of these include:
Resources such as guidelines, root cause analysis/ audit tools and fact sheets can be found on the following link: https://www.ncas-australia.org/
Many healthcare associated infections are preventable. As a consumer of healthcare, you may wish to know more about how to prevent acquiring an infection during your hospital stay. Consumer facts sheets have been developed to support the messages on healthcare associated infection contained in the NHMRC Australian Guidelines for the Prevention and Control of Infection in Healthcare (2010). These fact sheets aim to inform patients, visitors, families and carers about healthcare associated infection, what activities healthcare facilities have in place to prevent infections and/or to limit the spread of infections. (NB: The Australian Guidelines for the Prevention and Control of Infection in Healthcare (2010 Guidelines) are currently under review.
The current fact sheets can be accessed via the NHMRC website here
Click on the Go to Downloads button to find the brochures for the following:
Healthcare Associated Infections (HAI)
Clostridium difficile (CDI)
Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)
Vancomycin Resistant Enterococci (VRE)
There is a vast amount of information available on the internet in relation to healthcare associated infections some of which may not be accurate. If you wish to know more regarding infection prevention; contact the Infection Prevention team at your hospital, or you can use the recommended links of reputable websites below.
