HAI e-bulletin – June 2014
Flying the flag for infection prevention and control
The HAI Team have been out and about at various events promoting infection prevention
and control. A presentation at the Infection Prevention Society Scottish branch conference
on the Preventing Infections in Care at Home mobile app was well received by the
attendees. If you were at the NHSScotland Conference chances are you will have come
across the HAI team on the exhibition stand demonstrating hand hygiene and promoting the
wide range of educational resources. The team have also been showcasing outcomes from
infection prevention and control pilots in care homes and care at home services at the Joint
Improvement Team conference ‘Integrating for Better Outcomes’.
The HAI team are also actively supporting the new Standard Infection Control Precautions
(SICPs) campaign to raise awareness of infection control among all healthcare staff which
was launched by Scotland’s Chief Nursing Officer, Ros Moore. For more information about
this campaign visit www.sicps.scot.nhs.uk
Key HAI activities for 2014/15
In response to the HAI Task Force Delivery Plan, strategic drivers and feedback from
stakeholders, NES HAI Team will be focussing its activities during 2014/15 on the following:
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evaluate impact of existing educational resources
support for antimicrobial stewardship
adapt and develop the decontamination e-learning programmes
support the development of the HAI Quality Improvement Facilitators
embed Aseptic Technique in practice
explore, develop and implement sustainability strategies for the Cleanliness
Champions Programme
embed the use of educational resources in care homes and care at home settings
For further information on any of the planned activities or to work with NES to generate case
studies around the impact of educational resources in practice, please contact
Gill.Walker@nes.scot.nhs.uk
2014 health board engagement visits
It’s that time of year again and the HAI team are getting ready to hit the road and meet
health boards on the annual engagement visits. These visits provide a great opportunity to
exchange ideas, network and discuss any local issues with implementation of HAI resources
and identify ways in which NES can provide support. Engagement visits are co-ordinated
through the HAI Education Leads and Infection Control Managers. If you want to schedule a
visit please get in touch. Contact hai@nes.scot.nhs.uk
Needlestick Injury module review complete and new version launched
The Needlestick Injury module has undergone a thorough review and has been updated to
incorporate new legislation and guidance in respect of the prevention and management of
occupational exposure incidents including sharps injuries. The updated module is available
on learnPro and is now called NES: Prevention and Management of Occupational
Exposure. Further information is available at http://ow.ly/xqJI3
Antibiotic Prescribing Modules
Attention Junior Doctors
NHS Education for Scotland has released a new e-learning package on learnPro which offers the
most up to date national guidance to support the safe and effective use of gentamicin and
vancomycin.
The Scottish Antimicrobial Prescribing Group has expressed the wish that this package is being made
available to all junior doctors and other prescribers, as the safe and effective use of gentamicin and
vancomycin is a priority area for NHS Scotland.
You can find the modules on learnPro under “More Learning”.
NES: GaV - Gentamicin and Vancomycin
Further information is available at http://ow.ly/x04ev
Quality Improvement in HAI module launched
The module shows learners how simple improvements can be made in the workplace to
reduce healthcare associated infections. It provides an overview of the basics of quality
improvement and guides learners on how to start improvement work in their own area. You
do not require having any experience of quality improvement to undertake this module.
For further information please contact Sabine.Nolte@nes.scot.nhs.uk or visit the website at
http://ow.ly/xKT8B
HAI Quality Improvement Facilitator launch event
The HAI QIF Development Launch event - Making links with national safety developments
was held on 6th May 2014 in Edinburgh with 50 delegates in attendance. The event
provided the HAI QIFs, Infection Prevention and Control Managers, Scottish Patient Safety
Programme Managers and Practice Education Leads a chance to meet, exchange
knowledge, share successes in HAI quality improvement and explore development and
partnership opportunities.
NES colleagues continue to work with the HAI Quality Improvement Facilitators to provide an
educational programme to support their needs with further events and networking
opportunities planned. For further information and to see the output from the development
launch event visit the website at http://ow.ly/xHpJ0
Preventing and Controlling Healthcare Infection – Domestic Services Training Guide
NES in partnership with Health Facilities Scotland (HFS) have developed a DVD providing
education and training in infection prevention and control and cleaning of the healthcare
environment. The DVD was launched at the Facilities Services Information Day in May 2014
and the DVD will be distributed across health boards via Facilities Managers and Infection
Control Managers.
For further information please contact: Sarah.Freeman.@nes.scot.nhs.uk or visit the website
at http://ow.ly/xg9s6
Aseptic Technique Model Ward
The outcomes from the model ward project at Golden Jubilee National Hospital were
presented as a poster presentation at the NHSScotland Conference. Find out more about
the outcomes and how the approach could be adapted and replicated in your health board.
For further information please contact Alexa.Crawford@gjnh.scot.nhs.uk or
sarah.Freeman@nes.scot.nhs.uk or visit the website at http://ow.ly/yaGqt
Patient Safety Fellowship Applications
The Fellowship is open to healthcare staff who currently undertake clinical practice and have
a direct influence on improving the delivery of safe patient care, as well as staff in clinical
professions who do not currently deliver hands-on care but do have a role in improving
patient care or safety. Applications close on 11 July 2014. The application pack is available
for download from the QI Hub.
Share Your News
The HAI team welcome the inclusion of news from NHS health boards and other stakeholder
organisations. Let us know if you would like something included in the next edition. Contact
hai@nes.scot.nhs.uk
Your view matters - it’s time to have your say!
The HAI team are keen to hear from you with ideas on how we can improve the services and
educational resources provided to you. It could be related to communication, our web
pages, events, the resources themselves – whatever it is we would love to hear your ideas.
Get in touch and start the conversation, contact hai@nes.scot.nhs.uk
HAI Team
Dr Gill Walker, Programme Director
Sarah Freeman, Educational Projects Manager
Dr Sabine Nolte, Educational Projects Manager
Elaine Boyd, Practice Education Co-ordinator
Lesley Armstrong, Project Co-ordinator
Maria Khoudary, Project Administrator