/ en Fri, 25 Apr 2025 17:22:13 -0500 Thu, 09 Nov 23 15:21:24 -0600 /news/headline/2023-11-09-cdc-covid-19-flu-vaccination-rates-health-care-workers-low-last-season <p>Fewer than one in four health care professionals working in acute care hospitals and nursing homes were up to date with COVID-19 vaccination during the 2022-23 flu season, defined as receiving a bivalent booster dose or completing a primary series in the previous two months, and fewer than half of nursing home workers had received a flu vaccine, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/72/wr/mm7245a5.htm?s_cid=mm7245a5_w">reported</a> Nov. 9. <br />  <br /> “Tailored strategies might be useful to reach all HCP with recommended vaccines to protect them and their patients from vaccine-preventable respiratory diseases,” the authors said.</p> Thu, 09 Nov 2023 15:21:24 -0600 COVID-19: Protecting Health Care Workers /news/perspective/2023-02-24-supporting-todays-workforce-we-develop-solutions-future <p>The Senate Health, Education, Labor & Pensions Committee last week held a hearing aptly titled <a href="https://www.help.senate.gov/hearings/examining-health-care-workforce-shortages-where-do-we-go-from-here" target="_blank" title="U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions: Examining Health Care Workforce Shortages: Where Do We Go From Here?">“Examining Health Care Workforce Shortages: Where Do We Go from Here?”</a></p> <p>Clearly, all of our efforts to inform policymakers and the public about the urgent need to address the workforce challenges have resonated on Capitol Hill, as the tone and focus of this hearing demonstrated. And we welcomed the opportunity to not only work with the committee to inform the hearing, making sure the right questions were asked and most important issues were examined, but also to offer our views on how the government should respond.</p> <p>As we said in our <a href="/testimony/2023-02-15-aha-senate-statement-examining-health-care-workforce-shortages-where-do-we-go-here">written statement</a>, “long-building structural changes within the health care workforce, combined with the profound toll of the COVID-19 pandemic, have left hospitals and health systems facing a national staffing emergency.”</p> <p><strong>Our statement shared more than a dozen policy recommendations to help expand, revitalize and diversify the health care workforce.</strong></p> <p><strong>These include:</strong></p> <ul> <li>Addressing physician shortages, including shortages of behavioral health providers, by increasing the number of residency slots eligible for Medicare funding.</li> <li>Addressing nursing shortages by reauthorizing nursing workforce development programs to support recruitment, retention and advanced education for nurses and other allied health professionals and investing in nursing schools, nurse faculty salaries and hospital training time.</li> <li>Enhancing workplace safety for all team members, including by enacting federal protections for health care workers against violence and intimidation, and providing hospital grant funding for violence prevention training programs, coordination with state and local law enforcement, and physical plant improvements.</li> <li>Adopting policies to substantially expand loan repayment and other incentive-based programs to retain existing talent and attract new talent.</li> <li>Reducing administrative burdens, especially those imposed by commercial health insurance companies, which take clinicians away from the bedside and contribute to burnout, such as excessive and unnecessary use of prior authorization.</li> </ul> <p><strong>We need action now. An aging health care workforce, combined with a surge in retirements and the stress associated with responding to the pandemic over a multi-year period, has depleted our caregivers. There are simply not enough medical, nursing and allied health students coming up through the training ranks to take their places. This was true even prior to the pandemic, but COVID-19 has certainly exacerbated the situation.</strong></p> <p>Adding to the challenges: workforce costs, which account for more than half of hospitals’ expenses, have skyrocketed the last few years. Contract labor in particular as a share of total labor expenses rose 178.6% from 2019 to 2022 as health care staffing agencies profited from the pandemic by drastically increasing the hourly rates they charged to hospitals. AHA has urged the Federal Trade Commission and Administration to investigate these exorbitant price increases, which ballooned the bottom lines of staffing agencies and were not fully passed onto workers, for anticompetitive behavior.</p> <p>At the same time, hospitals and health systems are responding with new approaches and renewed determination to “care for the caregivers” and support them in all facets of their work. In addition, we see hospitals and health systems across the country working to expand training options, recruit internationally, launch nurse education and upskilling programs, reimagine care delivery models, invest in advancing leadership and technology skills development, partner with others for long-term solutions and analytics, and provide nontraditional support for health care workers, such as subsidized housing opportunities.</p> <p>Meanwhile, AHA continues to provide support and guidance by sharing resources, which are available on our <a href="/workforce-home">workforce webpage</a>, that address well-being, mental health and safety in the workplace; tools to strengthen the workforce; and ideas for team building, including recruitment and retention strategies. Significant efforts to modernize care models are needed and in process. These models are intended to leverage new technologies, predictive analytics, advanced care coordination and new health worker categories while addressing licensure requirements.</p> <p>A strong and healthy workforce is the backbone of American health care. We hope that last week’s hearing will generate fresh momentum in Congress for action, and we are encouraged by bipartisan support from Senate HELP leaders Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Bill Cassidy, R-La., both of whom have expressed interest in introducing legislation to address the health care workforce shortage.</p> <p><strong>The AHA will continue to work with Congress and all stakeholders to support and expand the health care workforce so that hospitals and health systems can provide the level of care that our nation needs today as well as in the future.</strong></p> Fri, 24 Feb 2023 12:25:41 -0600 COVID-19: Protecting Health Care Workers /news/healthcareinnovation-thursday-blog/2022-12-08-healing-power-music-how-adventhealth-staff-formed-orchestra-during-pandemic <p><img alt="#healthcareinnovation Thursday" src="/sites/default/files/2019-11/innovation-blog-banner-900.jpg"></p> <p>Early on in my professional journey as a physician, I had a calling to work with infectious diseases. Little did I know then how big a role this medical subspecialty would play in my life: training in the Epidemic Intelligence Service at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; working on outbreaks of anthrax, Ebola and H1N1 virus in the U.S.; and caring for COVID-19 patients at AdventHealth in Florida throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.</p> <p>From an epidemiological perspective, COVID-19’s fast-growing spread and global pervasiveness presented significant challenges the health care field hadn’t seen with previous diseases. My colleagues and I cared for so many gravely ill patients. We experienced fear and anxiety about spreading COVID-19 to our families when we returned home after work. Most tragically, hundreds of patients died, many without loved ones by their side, which had a huge emotional toll on all involved.</p> <p>Perhaps the biggest challenge for infectious disease clinicians like me during this time was trying to balance caring for patients with disseminating crucial information on such a large scale — and doing it without losing speed or efficiency. It’s easier said than done at a health system with 80,000-plus employees.</p> <h2>A Cathartic Experience Performing with Colleagues in the AdventHealth Orchestra</h2> <p><img alt="Vincent and Grace Hsu in scrubs and white coats with their instruments." data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="519656cc-062d-4d34-bbb8-397263942561" src="/sites/default/files/inline-images/Center-blog-Vincent-Grace-Hsu.jpg" width="572" height="600" class="align-left">One day at work during the pandemic, I saw an auditions announcement for a new, staff-only orchestra. Led by Richard Hickam, AdventHealth director of music and the arts, the orchestra became a way for health care employees to manage stress and express ourselves artistically in a safe environment.</p> <p>My wife, Grace, and I both decided to audition for the orchestra and were selected. Grace is a nurse at AdventHealth, and she and I have musical backgrounds and play several instruments. We were excited about playing in a musical ensemble with colleagues and saw it as a distraction from the pandemic.</p> <p>The first day of rehearsal was cathartic if not revelatory. My clinical colleagues shared music stands alongside AdventHealth vice presidents, the chief information officer, front-line nurses, lab team members and so many others.</p> <p>After a few rehearsals, the orchestra gave its premiere performance, recorded at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Orlando. Our first piece, Samuel Barber’s “Adagio for Strings,” is a beautiful melody known for its tear-jerking pathos. We dedicated <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gp6SbyQlMzA" target="_blank">the performance</a> to patients and loved ones we’d lost during the pandemic.</p> <p><img alt="Vincent Hsu playing violin with the AdventHealth Orchestra." data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="a7162bf4-c0b6-4234-818b-6a78498a5ff5" src="/sites/default/files/inline-images/Center-blog-Vincent-Hsu-violin.png" width="576" height="385" class="align-right">The performance was so well received by our community — and the experience so meaningful to us — that we resolved to continue the ensemble. The AdventHealth Orchestra plays on to this day and has increased its membership and number of performances.</p> <p>In December 2022, we’ll be performing an ambitious program of pieces by Tchaikovsky, Leroy Anderson and Georges Bizet for the public.</p> <h2>Insights from Sharing Music, Stories During the Pandemic</h2> <p>I’ve gleaned a myriad of lessons from playing in an orchestra. Performers must listen, communicate and be accountable to one another in real time, while blending technical skills with an emotional depth — all of which builds empathy.</p> <p><img alt="The AdventHealth Orchestra playing on stage." data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="b8bab307-3b14-441e-9a4d-f312f36036dd" src="/sites/default/files/inline-images/Center-blog-AdventHealth-orchestra.jpg" width="600" height="399" class="align-left">The AdventHealth Orchestra has been a wonderful experience as well as an effective way to address staff burnout and promote resilience and mental health in the workplace.</p> <p>One of the most important lessons from the pandemic is the value of communicating and using platforms like the AHA’s Living Learning Network to be inspired and inspire others to find creative solutions to everyday challenges. The LLN is a virtual community that connects health care professionals across the country to share knowledge and ideas and problem-solve together. Some of these connections and experiences are highlighted in the LLN’s recent <a href="/center/living-learning-network/pandemic-resiliency-and-community">pandemic reflection book</a>.</p> <p>As a field, we can make a conscious effort to share stories that convey the humanity behind the scenes of health care. Doing so will help us build stronger bonds among hospital teams, between clinicians and their patients, and between clinicians and the communities they serve.</p> <p><em>Vincent Hsu, M.D., is an infectious diseases and preventive medicine physician at AdventHealth Orlando, where he also serves as medical director of continuing medical education and assistant director of the Internal Medicine Residency Program.</em></p> <p><em>Hsu recently joined the AHA for a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M8iGR5mKA4E" target="_blank">Facebook Live broadcast</a> to discuss the bivalent booster and the importance of vaccinating and boosting kids against COVID-19. To see more of Hsu’s story and others like it, check out the AHA Living Learning Network’s <a href="/center/living-learning-network/pandemic-resiliency-and-community">“The Pandemic: Responding with Resilience and Service to Community.”</a></em></p> Thu, 08 Dec 2022 06:00:00 -0600 COVID-19: Protecting Health Care Workers /news/perspective/2022-10-07-perspective-strengthening-our-health-care-workforce-must-be-top-mind <p>America simply cannot be strong without its hospitals being strong. In turn, hospitals and health systems meet their mission and serve patients best when they are equipped with a strong, healthy and resilient workforce.</p> <p>That resilience has been severely tested in recent years, as the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated existing strains on our health care workforce. Nationwide, health care providers report extremely concerning rates of burnout, exhaustion, depression and even suicide.</p> <p>These problems are affecting patient care now and present challenges for attracting and retaining enough skilled health care workers to meet our future care needs.</p> <p>In response, there has been growing awareness and consensus across many sectors that our health care workforce — our most precious resource — needs a helping hand of its own right now.</p> <p><strong>The AHA is committed to helping hospitals and health systems support their people today, prepare them for tomorrow and build a pathway for the future.</strong></p> <p>During the last few months, we released a three-part resource, <a href="/workforce-home" target="_blank">“Strengthening the Health Care Workforce: Strategies for Now, Near and Far,”</a> which is designed to help hospitals navigate workforce challenges and opportunities, as well as highlight strategies and resources to assist on these pivotal efforts. Broadly, our resource covers team support by addressing well-being, mental health and safety in the workplace; technological tools to strengthen the workforce; and ideas for team building, including recruitment and retention strategies.</p> <p>In addition, we recently released a <a href="/news/headline/2022-09-28-aha-resource-highlights-strategies-identifying-and-intervening-prevent" target="_blank">new resource</a> supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to assist hospitals’ and health systems’ efforts to prevent suicide in the health care workforce. On our webpage, we also feature hospital and <a href="/suicideprevention" target="_blank">health system leaders sharing stories</a> about the reality of suicide risks and how they are working with their teams to create hope through action.</p> <p>Also, just this week the National Academy of Medicine Action Collaborative on Clinician Well-Being and Resilience finalized the <a href="https://nam.edu/initiatives/clinician-resilience-and-well-being/national-plan-for-health-workforce-well-being/" target="_blank">National Plan for Health Workforce Well-Being</a>, which builds on six years of work among 200 participants, and for which AHA provided input from the start.</p> <p>It has been encouraging to see more broad-based stakeholder engagement — from the government at all levels, commercial insurance companies, academics, health information technology companies, and professional and specialty societies, among others — about the need to step up and support our health care workforce.</p> <p>NAM’s leadership in bringing together such a broad group of stakeholders creates increased momentum for addressing this issue … and signals that this is a high priority for the nation that must involve a collaborative effort by all stakeholders.</p> <p>Our goals for restoring physical and behavioral health to our health care workforce align with NAM’s in several key areas. They include regulatory relief to free up providers from burdensome administrative tasks that subtract from time spent with patients, and eliminating obstacles from commercial insurers, such as the tedious prior authorization requirements that many providers consider a serious impediment to their jobs, just to name a few.</p> <p>Health care workers are critical to a hospital’s mission of treating patients and saving lives each and every day. They make it possible for hospitals and health systems to always be there, ready to care.</p> <p>It is essential that we all work together as we continue to develop resources to protect and optimize the well-being of current health care workers and future generations of caregivers.</p> Fri, 07 Oct 2022 09:51:49 -0500 COVID-19: Protecting Health Care Workers /news/headline/2022-07-26-study-sars-cov-2-infection-risk-low-ed-staff-using-recommended-prevention <p>Using recommended prevention practices can largely eliminate the occupational risk of COVID-19 to health care personnel, <a href="https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0271597">according to a study</a> of over 1,600 direct care staff in 20 hospital emergency departments before COVID-19 vaccines were available. Despite frequent exposure to high-risk aerosol-generating procedures, only 4.5% of ED clinical staff were infected during the 20-week study, comparable to the infection rate for non-clinical ED staff. <br />  <br /> Funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the study also found that “exposure in family and community settings plays an extremely important role in acquisition of COVID-19 by HCP,” CDC officials note <a href="https://blogs.cdc.gov/safehealthcare/demonstrating-ability-to-protect/">in a blog post</a> on the findings. “Thus, interventions such as vaccination that provide protection in both work and non-work settings are critical for preventing COVID-19 in HCP.” <br />  </p> Tue, 26 Jul 2022 15:20:47 -0500 COVID-19: Protecting Health Care Workers /aha-center-health-innovation-market-scan/2022-05-24-virginia-hospitals-covid-19-triage-model-may <div class="container"> <div class="row"> <div class="col-md-8"> <p><img alt="Virginia Hospital’s COVID-19 Triage Model May Pay Dividends Even after the Pandemic. Clinicians treating COVID-19 patients don personal protective equipment (PPE) before treating patients." data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="6d9ef862-8913-4c3e-bc77-df14df398e51" src="/sites/default/files/inline-images/Virginia-Hospitals-COVID-19-Triage-Model-May-Pay-Dividends-Even-After-the-Pandemic.jpg" width="620" height="381"></p> <p>Efficiently managing emergency department (ED) patient flow, personnel and discharged patients can be difficult in any conditions, but the pandemic presented its own set of challenges. Virginia-based <a href="https://www.inova.org/locations/inova-fairfax-medical-campus" target="_blank" title="Inova: Inova Fairfax Medical Campus">Inova Fairfax Hospital</a> developed an innovative approach to address these issues by implementing what it calls Provider-Only Patient (POP) protocols for patients suspected of having COVID-19, notes a recent <a href="https://catalyst.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/CAT.22.0046" target="_blank" title="NEJM Catalyst: Provider-Only Patients: A Novel Approach to ED Volume Surge and Covid-19">NEJM Catalyst report</a>.</p> <p>The hospital developed a designated area in the ED where low-acuity patients were seen and discharged directly by physicians or advanced practice providers. POP protocols were followed for patients 21-64 years old suspected of having COVID-19 who had an emergency severity index score of 4 or 5 on a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 being the most urgent.</p> <p>Patients entering the ED initially were triaged by a nurse or physician to determine POP status. Those who exhibited signs of hemodynamic instability (e.g., hypo- or hypertension), had room air oxygen saturation below 96%, were pregnant, had difficulty ambulating or who had inadequate social support were not included in the POP patient queue.</p> <p>Inova studied the results of the program for a 46-day period between Dec. 1, 2021, and Jan. 15., 2022, and found some interesting results.</p> <p>POP patients spent significantly less time in the ED than non-POP patients and none of the 640 POP patients returned to the hospital for admission within 72 hours. The study’s authors also reported that the POP triage and delivery process saved nearly 1,900 hours of nursing and 705 hours of provider time during the 46-day study period.</p> </div> <div class="col-md-4"> <p><a href="/center" title="Visit the AHA Center for Health Innovation landing page."><img alt="AHA Center for Health Innovation logo" data-entity- data-entity-uuid="7ade6b12-de98-4d0b-965f-a7c99d9463c5" src="/sites/default/files/inline-images/logo-aha-innovation-center-color-sm.jpg" type="file" class="align-center"></a></p> <a href="/center/form/innovation-subscription"><img alt data-entity-type data-entity-uuid src="/sites/default/files/2019-04/Market_Scan_Call_Out_360x300.png"></a></div> </div> </div> .field_featured_image { position: absolute; overflow: hidden; clip: rect(0 0 0 0); height: 1px; width: 1px; margin: -1px; padding: 0; border: 0; } .featured-image{ position: absolute; overflow: hidden; clip: rect(0 0 0 0); height: 1px; width: 1px; margin: -1px; padding: 0; border: 0; } Tue, 24 May 2022 06:15:00 -0500 COVID-19: Protecting Health Care Workers /aha-news/2022-04-18-supporting-those-who-care-patients <div class="container"> <div class="row"> <div class="col-md-8"> <p>Tired, exhausted, anxious and burned out. Those are just some of the words health care workers have used to describe what working through a pandemic has been like.</p> <p>Our workforce continues to confront a landscape deeply altered by the pandemic’s effects. This is especially true of nurses, who are essential in all aspects of health care delivery.</p> <p>Hospitals and health systems know how invaluable our workforce is. We cannot provide quality, compassionate patient care without nurses. We are passionate about our profession and purposeful about providing life-saving care. It is no wonder that for 20 years, the public has identified nurses as the most trusted professionals. However, we also know our field is facing unprecedented pressures that require action.</p> <p>Those pressures start with physical and mental strain as nurses feel the weight of critical staffing shortages and a more than two-year battle with COVID-19.</p> <p>At the beginning of the pandemic, we were hailed as heroes but now we face increasing acts of violence and abuse in our workplace.</p> <ul> <li>A survey published in Workplace Health & Safety revealed two-thirds of nurses experienced verbal abuse in early 2020, especially those caring for COVID-19 patients, and 44.4% of nurses encountered physical violence.</li> </ul> <p>Workplace violence was an issue prior to the pandemic. A 2019 survey of more than 5,000 nurses found nearly 6 in 10 had been verbally abused, and 1 in 4 physically assaulted, by patients.</p> <p>The combination of crushing workloads and shocking violence is producing historic levels of stress, trauma and burnout. Hospitals are stepping up to tackle these pivotal issues.</p> <p>To address nursing shortages and resulting burnout, hospitals are intensifying recruiting and retention efforts to attract qualified staff and provide existing team members the support they need. Health leaders are working to open lines of communication, creating early warning systems to identify stressors before they become overwhelming, and pursuing innovations to help caregivers work more efficiently.</p> <p>And while we may never reduce violence in our hospitals to zero – because we are there to serve in the most challenging settings and circumstances – we can insist on zero tolerance for abusive behavior.</p> <p>The AHA has asked the U.S. Attorney General to support legislation that would create federal protections from intimidation and assault for health care workers. <strong>People who dedicate themselves to saving lives deserve a safe environment, free of violence and intimidation.</strong></p> <p>The AHA’s Hospitals Against Violence (HAV) initiative has worked to address violence not just within hospitals and health systems – but also in the communities they serve.</p> <p>Hospitals are taking direct and determined action: from raising risk awareness, to better and more transparent reporting, to wider information-sharing, to investments in security, surveillance and alert notifications.</p> <p>Despite the most trying circumstances, nurses continue to offer healing and consolation, night and day, day-in and dayout. We won’t let up in ensuring nurses feel both safe and satisfied in the vital work they perform. We are more committed than ever to supporting those who care our patients.</p> </div> <div class="col-md-4"><a href="/system/files/media/file/2022/04/supporting-those-who-care-for-patients-advertorial-r-begley-r.pdf"><img alt="USA Today Supporting Those Who Care for Patients" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid src="/sites/default/files/2022-04/supporting-those-who-care-for-patients-advertorial-r-begley-592.png"></a></div> </div> </div> Mon, 18 Apr 2022 13:07:20 -0500 COVID-19: Protecting Health Care Workers /news/headline/2022-03-29-aha-seeks-longer-comment-period-emergency-temporary-standard <p>AHA today urged the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to extend at least through May 23 its reopened comment period for the interim final rule establishing an emergency temporary standard for occupational exposure to COVID-19. Comments are currently due April 22.? <br />  <br /> “The AHA and its members are working diligently to assess the need for and impact of the potential provisions and approaches specified in the notice as well as OSHA’s request for additional studies, information and data related to the delta and omicron variants since the close of OSHA’s initial comment period in August 2021,” AHA <a href="/lettercomment/2022-03-28-aha-urges-osha-extend-comment-period-emergency-temporary-standard">wrote</a>. “An extension will enable hospitals and other stakeholders to deliberate, analyze and prepare thoughtful comments for OSHA’s review.”  </p> Tue, 29 Mar 2022 15:36:14 -0500 COVID-19: Protecting Health Care Workers <p class="text-align-center"><strong><a class="btn btn-primary btn-wide" href="/system/files/media/file/2022/03/supporting-health-care-workforce-and-addressing-challenges-exacerbated-by-the-covid-19-pandemic-advisory-3-24-11.pdf">Download the Member Advisory PDF</a></strong></p> <p> </p> <p>Since the beginning of 2020, hospitals, health systems and post-acute care providers — along with their doctors, nurses and other team members — have been on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic, working tirelessly to provide lifesaving care for patients, families and communities. Their steadfast mission of caring and compassion has saved lives, healed families and helped to protect communities.</p> <p>At the same time, our nation’s health care workforce is extremely strained from the ongoing pandemic. The stress, trauma and burnout caregivers are experiencing is at an historic level. This is coupled with severe workforce shortages and increased violence directed at health care staff — all of which has put us on an unstainable path.</p> <p>The AHA has been sounding the alarm that our health care workforce crisis is a national emergency that demands immediate attention from all levels of government and workable solutions from all stakeholders. For this reason, the AHA created a board level task force to recommend proven creative strategies for the field.</p> <p>Following are some resources that hospitals and health systems can use to navigate the ongoing workforce challenges, and information about upcoming events that could draw additional attention to health care workforce issues.</p> <h2>CREATING SAFER WORKPLACES</h2> <p>Hospitals and health systems engage in many activities designed to improve the quality and safety of the care they provide. A safe environment for staff, patients and families is imperative to the delivery of quality care. April is Workplace Violence Awareness Month, and AHA is taking a number of actions to enhance and support workforce safety.</p> <h3>Letter to the Attorney General</h3> <p>AHA yesterday sent a <a href="/lettercomment/2022-03-23-aha-letter-attorney-general-merrick-garland-workforce-violence" target="_blank">letter</a> to the U.S. Attorney General seeking support for legislation that would create federal protections from intimidation and assault for health care workers. The letter highlights the serious incidents of violence that have increased against health care workers since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.</p> <h3>Framework for Building a Safe Workplace</h3> <p>AHA’s Hospitals Against Violence helps guide hospital and health system leadership to address the issues of violence in their workplaces. The <a href="/system/files/media/file/2021/10/building-a-safe-workplace-and-community-framework-for-hospitals-and-health-systems.pdf" target="_blank">framework</a> focuses on four pillars necessary for implementing a comprehensive violence mitigation strategy: trauma support, violence intervention, culture of safety and mitigating risk.</p> <h3>Guide to Mitigating Violence in Health Care Settings</h3> <p>AHA and the International Association for Healthcare Security and Safety (IAHSS) developed a <a href="/system/files/media/file/2021/10/creating-safer-workplaces-guide-to-mitigating-violence-in-health-care-settings-f.pdf" target="_blank">resource</a> for health care and security leaders offering recommended action steps, case studies, best practices and individual solutions to build a safer workplace. In addition, you can listen to a <a href="/advancing-health-podcast/2021-10-27-combating-workplace-violence-health-care-creating-safer" target="_blank">podcast</a> with Erik Martin, R.N., chief nursing officer of Norton Children’s Hospital, and Connie Packard, chief of public safety at Boston Medical Center and IAHSS vice president and treasurer, discussing the learnings from the AHA and IAHHS guide.</p> <h2>NATIONAL NURSE MARCH PLANNED FOR MAY 12</h2> <p>The AHA is monitoring the upcoming <a href="https://nationalnursesmarch.org/" target="_blank">National Nurse March</a> in Washington, D.C., planned for May 12, during National Hospital Week. According to organizers, participants will highlight several issues that nurses have faced throughout the pandemic, including workplace violence, staffing ratios and pay. <strong><a href="/talking-points/2022-03-23-workforce-messages" target="_blank">View key messages and talking points related to workforce issues here</a></strong>. The AHA will share additional resources with the field in the weeks leading up to the march.</p> <h2>RESOURCES TO SUPPORT CAREGIVERS AND NEW VIDEO SERIES</h2> <p>The AHA has developed and disseminated a number of resources to help hospitals and health systems support their caregivers and address workforce challenges. These include: examples of innovative efforts that support caregiver well-being; resources on apprenticeships, team-based models and community partnerships to plan for the future of the workforce; and a podcast series featuring nurse leaders from hospitals and health systems talking about resiliency and redesigning workflow. To access all of these resources and others, please visit AHA’s <a href="/workforce-home" target="_blank">webpage</a>.</p> <p>In addition, AHA has started running a <a href="/workforce/videos" target="_blank">video series</a> spotlighting nurses and caregivers from across the country discussing the importance of their work in advancing the health of patients and communities. The nurses share their stories from being on the front line of the COVID-19 pandemic and why they went into health care and the nursing profession.</p> <p>As a member of the National Academy of Medicine Action Collaborative on Clinician Well-Being and Resilience, the AHA helped to launch a <a href="https://nam.edu/compendium-of-key-resources-for-improving-clinician-well-being/" target="_blank">Resource Compendium for Health Care Workforce Well-Being</a>, which highlights ready-to-be-deployed tools and strategies to address health care workers’ burnout.</p> <p>The AHA also launched a well-being <a href="/physicians/well-playbook" target="_blank">playbook</a> as a COVID-19 resource for hospital and health system leaders. In addition, the American Organization for Nursing Leadership (AONL) created a <a href="https://www.aonl.org/resources/leading-through-crisis" target="_blank">resource</a> to provide nurse leaders with practical tips and effective strategies for addressing challenges unique to a crisis. AONL also created a series of <a href="https://www.aonl.org/leadership-beyond-pandemic" target="_blank">podcasts</a> and conversations to capture the innovations in care delivery with creative adaptations in technology, job role redesign and community outreach that emerged during the pandemic.</p> <h2>WHAT YOU CAN DO</h2> <ul> <li>Share this Advisory with your executive team and communications team.</li> <li>Remind your employees about your organization’s specific resources and support available to them.</li> <li>Offer your team members a platform to share their experiences. <ul> <li>The AHA would like to partner with you and spotlight testimonials of your amazing caregivers through our #WeAreHealthcare initiative. Please visit our <a href="/workforce/videos" target="_blank">webpage</a> to learn more.</li> </ul> </li> <li>Ask your team members how your organization might improve the workplace, develop a plan and implement these ideas.</li> <li>Continue to share the incredible work your hospital or health system is doing both related to the ongoing battle against COVID-19, but also through the everyday activities and outreach to patients and communities. Please make sure to share those stories with your lawmakers and your local media.</li> <li>Begin planning for the National Nurse March and how your organization may respond to questions from team members or the media.</li> </ul> <h2>FURTHER QUESTIONS</h2> <p>If you have questions, please contact AHA at 800-424-4301.</p> Thu, 24 Mar 2022 11:04:13 -0500 COVID-19: Protecting Health Care Workers /news/healthcareinnovation-thursday-blog/2022-03-03-what-pandemic-has-taught-us-about-infection <p><img alt="#healthcareinnovation Thursday" src="/sites/default/files/2019-11/innovation-blog-banner-900.jpg" /></p> <p>In the face of the most difficult challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic, opportunities have emerged to form multidisciplinary teams and enhance infection control and prevention training across health care settings. At Geisinger, our environmental services team plays an essential role on our EVS Advisory Council, which was formed during the pandemic. The council is co-chaired by EVS and ICP leadership. We know that EVS technicians don’t just keep facilities clean, they help save lives.</p> <p>The pandemic has taught us to champion our EVS staff as a critical part of our patient care teams. And it starts by inspiring greater collaboration between EVS technicians and infection prevention specialists and clinicians systemwide. It requires a comprehensive training program that supports all health care workers and their specialized roles in delivering patient care.</p> <blockquote> <h4>We’ve seen that valuable training and professional development help employees feel happier in their work, become more excited about the prospect of success and develop a higher self-worth.</h4> </blockquote> <p>Early on, the Association for the Health Care Environment, an AHA professional membership group, approached Geisinger about a suite of infection prevention and control training resources called Project Firstline. Led by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and supported by the AHA, Project Firstline offers training tools and resources to help improve communications about infection control practices and provides guidance on creating a "culture of safety."</p> <p>The training focuses on preventing surgical site infections, central line-associated bloodstream infections, ventilator-associated pneumonia, catheter-associated urinary tract infections, Clostridium difficile and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). In addition, it includes information on basic protocols for universal precautions and isolation precautions to protect patients, visitors and practitioners from the most common disease transmissions. The training promotes positive behaviors such as teamwork, communication, handwashing, proper use of medical devices, and facility maintenance and care. It focuses not just on “what” we do to prevent health care-associated infections but also “why” we do what we do as health care workers.</p> <p>No doubt Project Firstline is having a highly measurable impact at all levels of front-line infection prevention training at Geisinger. The tools and resources are a great prerequisite opportunity for teams to become <a href="https://www.ahe.org/designations/chest" target="_blank" title="Certified Health Care Environmental Services Technician (CHEST) landing page.">CHEST</a> certified. CHEST is a certification program for EVS technicians through AHE. It uses a national job analysis of the EVS technician’s role and responsibilities and defined focus groups. CHEST covers all aspects of a front-line worker’s typical tasks and accountabilities.</p> <p>And finally, we believe that a trained, motivated workforce is key to long-term retention. We are grateful for the opportunities Project Firstline provides to advance the knowledge and skill sets of our teams. We’ve seen that valuable training and professional development help employees feel happier in their work, become more excited about the prospect of success and develop a higher self-worth.</p> <p>We are thrilled to share a more detailed account of our success in developing and deploying an EVS advisory council or ICP multidisciplinary team using Project Firstline in this <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s8S3LdN14s4" target="_blank" title="YouTube.com Taking Care of the Patients: Geisinger and Project Firstline">video</a> created especially for the AHA. And we encourage all hospitals and health systems to check out the <a href="/center/project-firstline" target="_blank">Project Firstline resources</a>.</p> <p><em>Eric Nowak is associate vice president, environmental services, at Geisinger.</em></p> <p><em>Project Firstline is a national collaborative led by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to provide infection control training and education to front-line health care workers and public health personnel. AHA is proud to partner with Project Firstline, as supported through Cooperative Agreement CDC-RFA-OT18-1802. CDC is an agency within the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The contents of this webpage do not necessarily represent the policies of CDC or HHS, and should not be considered an endorsement by the Federal Government.</em></p> Thu, 03 Mar 2022 11:26:31 -0600 COVID-19: Protecting Health Care Workers