Infection Preventionist

Overview:
Our team members are the heart of what makes us better.

At **Hackensack Meridian **_Health_** we help our patients live better, healthier lives — and we help one another to succeed. With a culture rooted in connection and collaboration, our employees are team members. Here, competitive benefits are just the beginning. It’s also about how we support one another and how we show up for our community.

Together, we keep getting better - advancing our mission to transform healthcare and serve as a leader of positive change.

The **Infection Preventionist** supports organization-wide infection surveillance, prevention and control program in accordance with current requirements of regulatory, government and accrediting/licensing agencies and organizational policies and procedures. Duties include surveillance for healthcare-associated infections (HAIs); collection, analysis, interpretation and reporting of surveillance data; implementing organizational performance improvement initiatives outbreak investigation; educating Team Members (TMs) and patients, and annual evaluation of the Infection Prevention program.

**Responsibilities**:
A day in the life of a **Infection Preventionist** at Hackensack Meridian _Health_ includes:

- In collaboration with the Infection Prevention leadership develops, implements, and evaluates the organizational infection prevention program.
- Conducts surveillance of hospital acquired infections in accordance with CDC's National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) definitions.
- Records and reports communicable diseases as defined by federal, state, and local levels.
- In collaboration with the Infection Prevention leadership develops annual surveillance plan and risk assessment(s) based on population(s) served, services provided, and analysis of surveillance data.
- Utilizes epidemiologic principles to conduct surveillance plan as necessary, investigate and implement control measure for outbreaks.
- Participates in the development, interpretation, and implementation of infection prevention policies and procedures.
- Communicates infection prevention information and data to various committees, leadership, departments and healthcare workers across the organization as assigned.
- Review sterilization and disinfection policies and procedures, identifies necessary changes and monitors compliance.
- Assists in the development of Infection Prevention and Control Construction Risk Assessments (ICRAs) for construction, renovation and maintenance projects and monitors compliance with infection prevention recommendations to reduce risk of communicable disease exposures to patients and TMs.
- Rounds on units/departments to observe compliance with infection prevention policies/procedures and provide just in time coaching (e.g. Disinfection processes, hand hygiene and PPE)
- Participates on environment of care rounds as assigned
- Participates in network or hospital-based committees providing infection prevention and control expertise as assigned by Infection Prevention leadership.
- May be required to work or be on call weekends and/or second shift based on department needs.
- Design and Deliver Education 1. Develops and conducts formal and informal educational programs regarding infection prevention and control practices, policies, and procedures
- Assess and address learning needs of those served.
- Create education goals, objectives, and strategies using learning principles and available educational tools and technology.
- Evaluate the effectiveness of educational programs and learner outcomes.
- Complies with regulatory and mandatory reporting requirements at the local, state and federal levels.
- Facilitates compliance with regulatory and accreditation standards (e.g. NHSN, Joint Commission, etc.)
- Stay current on infection prevention regulatory and accreditation standards.
- Performance Improvement (PI)/Patient Safety :Utilize PI methodology as a means of enacting change.
- Selects appropriate PI tools to aid in efficiency, reliability, effectiveness and ensure sustainability of the initiative.
- Ensure that customer needs and expectations are considered in the development of and continuous improvement of processes, products, and services.
- Monitor and analyze process and outcome measures to evaluate the effectiveness and sustainability.
- Perform Root Cause Analysis/Apparent Cause Analysis on HAIs.
- Participate in PI committees, teams and initiatives as indicated.
- Assesses risk of occupational exposures to infectious disease and develops mitigation strategies to minimize exposure risk.
- Assists with rates/trends of occupational exposure if indicated.
- Collaborates with Occupational Health to identify and investigate potential communicable disease exposures, and provides guidance on evaluation, management of exposed TMs and any potential work restrictions. Collaborates with all departments within the organization as needed.
- Consults and collaborates, as needed, with local,