Daily FUNdamentals

Ideas for Content

• Hand hygiene is the single most effective way to prevent the spread of infections.
• Visibly dirty hands require washing with soap and water for 20 seconds.
• Alcohol-based hand rub kills germs on hands. Soap and water washes them away

Wordle

Play the IIPW Wordle for Sunday

Fun Activity

Adapted from https://www.cdc.gov/healthyschools/bam/teachers/documents/epi_4_hand_wash.pdf

Materials:

• Powder or gel that simulates the presence of germs on hands. These products are commercially available:
  • Glo Germ http://www.glogerm.com/
  • GlitterBug (Brevis) http://www.brevis.com/
  • Water-based paint
• Black light or Ultraviolet light, if using luminescent gel/powder.
• Sink
• Soap
• Paper Towels
• Optional: Alcohol-based hand rub

Procedure:

1. Spread some of the germ-simulating powder or gel on hands. Spread it evenly over both hands, like applying a lotion, including the backs of the hands and the skin next to and under the fingernails. Allow hands to dry completely (this should take a minute or two). Then place the hands under the black or UV light. Under the light, the “germs” will show up.
   • Optional: If possible, add the germ-simulation powder or gel to alcohol-based hand rub. Instruct the person to apply the hand rub like they would use it typically. Use the black or UV light to help visualize distribution of the product over hand surface.
2. Wash hands with soap and water. Dry with paper towel. Then place the hands under the black or UV light. Under the light, the “germs” will show up. Encourage observe to recognize the muscle memory that we use when washing hands and to consider consciously washing those areas observed as still “dirty” under the light.

Gratitude Message

• High five for clean hands! Way to go protecting others and yourself from infection!
• Clean hands, healthy people. Keep up the great work!

External Resources

World Health Organization: 5 Moments for Hand Hygiene:  https://cdn.who.int/media/docs/default-source/integrated-health-services-(ihs)/infection-prevention-and-control/your-5-moments-for-hand-hygiene-poster.pdf?sfvrsn=83e2fb0e_21

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention:  Hand Hygiene in Healthcare Settings:  https://www.cdc.gov/handhygiene/index.html

Global Handwashing Day: https://globalhandwashing.org/global-handwashing-day/

Ideas for Content

• Cleaning visible dirt and debris off surfaces is an essential first step to disinfection and sterilization.
• Mixing chemicals can be dangerous. Always follow manufacturer’s directions when using cleaners or disinfectants.
• Materials matter. Refer to the device manufacturer’s instructions for cleaning/disinfection to ensure it can be done properly for your setting.

Wordle

Play the IIPW Wordle for Monday

Fun Activity

Materials:

• A liquid laundry detergent with optical brighteners, such as Tide
• Medicine cup
• Cotton-tipped applicators
• Black light or Ultraviolet light, if using luminescent gel/powder.
• Various mobile medical equipment such as an IV pump and pole or blood glucometer.
• Gloves
• Disinfectant wipes

Procedure:

1. Prior to participant engagement:
   • Pour about 1-4 ml of liquid detergent into the medicine cup.
   • Dip the cotton-tipped applicatioon into the detergent and apply generously to the surface of medical equipment.
   • In a dark room, illuminate the device with the black/UV light to verify adequate application. Turn off black/UV light and turn on lights in room again.
2. Invite participants to don gloves and disinfect the equipment with provided wipes. Use this opportunity to educate/quiz participants on proper use of disinfectant wipes including using enough wipes for the surface area being disinfected, cleaning then disinfecting when visibly soiled, and contact/wet/dwell time understanding.
3. Upon participant’s completion, once more dim the room lights and illuminate the device with the black/UV light to see if any surfaces remain glowing form detergent. Provide coaching or celebration for a job well done!

Gratitude Message

• Thank you for helping make our world squeaky clean!
• You’re full of good CLEAN fun! I’m so glad you’re on our team!
• You’re neat! Thank you for keeping our environment clean and healthy.

External Resources

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Guideline for Disinfection and Sterilization in Healthcare Facilities (2008): https://www.cdc.gov/infectioncontrol/guidelines/disinfection/cleaning.html

Ideas for Content

• Vaccines protect the person that receives them and those around them by being highly effective and safe methods of preventing communicable (infectious) diseases.
• It is still possible to get sick from an infection after receiving the vaccine for it, but the severity of illness will be significantly less than if not vaccinated, decreasing the likelihood of hospitalization and death from the illness.
• Life-protecting vaccinations are recommended on a specific schedule throughout one’s lifetime

Wordle

Play the IIPW Wordle for Tuesday

Fun Activity

Vaccine memory game

Adapted from https://www.immunology.org/public-information/vaccine-resources/childhood-vaccines/activity-packs/hands-activities

Aim:

Demonstrate that vaccines produce their protective effect by giving the body a harmless element of the infectious agent, which kick-starts an immune response and creates immunological memory. This memory enables the immune system to recognize harmful pathogens on a later occasion and respond rapidly.

Set up:

Place the objects on a tray and keep them covered with a tea-towel or cloth until you are ready to play the game. Vary the number of objects according to the ages of participants. Give each participant a pencil and paper.

Procedure:

1. Facilitator lifts the cloth and gives the participant a set amount of time (based on the number of objects present on tray) to memorize them and then recovers the tray.
2. Participant must then write down all the objects they remember.
3. Facilitator uncovers the objects again and compares with participants answers, while explaining that each object is present for a reason specific to vaccines.
   • Optional message to provide about vaccines:Vaccines teach the body to recognize and defend itself against infections from harmful pathogens, such as bacteria and viruses. Vaccines provide a sneak ‘preview’ of a specific pathogen, which kick-starts the body’s immune system to prepare itself to prevent infection occurring. This sneak preview is a harmless element of the pathogen that makes the body produce antibodies and memory cells. When we encounter a pathogen a second time, these memory cells can quickly deal with the infection by producing sufficient quantities of antibodies. 
   • Several infectious diseases including smallpox, measles, mumps, rubella, diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, tuberculosis, and polio are no longer a threat in Europe due to the successful application of vaccines. And vaccines give the body a lasting memory. And just like you remembered the objects here, if you’ve been vaccinated your body remembers what a harmful pathogen looks like because the vaccine has already given it a sneaky peak. This means your body develops a lasting memory to protect it against disease and infection!

Suggested Objects and Explanations of relevance to Vaccines:

• Edward Jenner photo (from internet search) – Edward Jenner was a very famous English scientist whose name has gone down in medical history. Edward Jenner was responsible for discovering the world’s first-ever vaccine and his work saved so many lives – in fact Jenner’s work is said to have saved more lives than the work of any other human! He was born in 1749 in Gloucestershire, where he trained as a doctor and became famous for his discovery of the smallpox vaccine. His discovery was a huge medical breakthrough; in 1980, the World Health Organization declared the dangerous disease smallpox an eliminated disease.
• A mini globe – because vaccines save lives around the world but 1 in 5 children worldwide are still not receiving the vaccines they need.
• A mini clock or watch – because 1 child still dies every 20 seconds from a vaccine preventable disease.
• A DNA double helix (make your own origami version) – because we are all made of trillions of cells. Our cells are told what to do by a very special molecule called DNA. DNA is a record of instructions telling the cell what its job is going to be. A good analogy for DNA is a set of blueprints for the cell, or computer code telling a PC what to do. It is written in a special alphabet that is only four letters long! Unlike a book or computer screen, DNA isn’t flat and boring – it is a beautiful, curved ladder. We call this shape a double helix.
  • Viruses are very small particles that can infect animals and plants and make them sick. Viruses are made up of genetic materials like DNA and are protected by a coating of protein
  • Viruses hijack the cells of living organisms. They inject their genetic material right into the cell and take over. They then use the cell to make more viruses and take over more cells.
  • There are many viruses that can infect people and make them sick. One of the most common is influenza which causes people to get the flu.
  • Scientists have developed vaccines that help our bodies to build up immunity to a specific virus. One example of a vaccine is the flu jab. The flu jab helps the body to develop its own defenses against the flu called antibodies.
• A superhero mask – when you get your vaccine you become a superhero. Germs and diseases, like the flu, spread from person to person. If enough people get vaccinated and become superheroes, like you, the germs won’t have anyone to infect. We call this herd immunity. When you get vaccinated, you’re not only protecting yourself but others too.
• A mini toy cow – because the word vaccine, and vaccination, comes from the name for the cowpox virus, vaccinia, to be exact.
• Any of the vaccination giant microbes – to explain any of the diseases the vaccines are protecting against.

Gratitude Message

• I see you championing vaccines! Keep it up – more are joining you!
• Thank you for making the world a safer place by vaccination.

External Resources

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Vaccines & Immunizations: https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/index.html

Ideas for Content

• Use PPE whenever there is an expectation of possible exposure to infectious material
• Know the sequence of putting on and taking off PPE to reduce the risk of contamination
• Gloves are not a substitute for hand hygiene

Wordle

Play the IIPW Wordle for Wednesday

Fun Activity

• Don gloves and try to remove them without getting shaving cream on hands using proper glove removal process – demonstrates the potential for contaminating your hands after removing gloves and why hand hygiene is critical after removing gloves
• Have participants state the correct order of PPE donning and doffing for maximum precautions gets you a prize/candy/etc. OR Velcro pictures of PPE in the correct order (https://www.cdc.gov/hai/pdfs/ppe/ppe-sequence.pdf)

Gratitude Message

• Thank you for shielding our patients from infections! You are awesome!
• Thank you for STANDING up for Standard precautions! Your efforts are protecting yourself and your patients! 
• We gLOVE you for wearing PPE to reduce the risk of transmitting infections! You rock!

External Resources

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Sequence for putting on and removing PPE: https://www.cdc.gov/hai/pdfs/ppe/ppe-sequence.pdf

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Ebola PPE Donning and Doffing Procedures: https://www.cdc.gov/vhf/ebola/hcp/ppe-training/index.html Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Occupationally acquired infections in healthcare settings: https://www.cdc.gov/infectioncontrol/oai-hcp.html#anchor_1634672315434

Ideas for Content

• Respiratory season is not just for winter, be prepared 365 days a year
• Have signage in lobbies and waiting areas
• Have tools for success: tissues, masks, hand sanitizer, & trash receptacles

Wordle

Play the IIPW Wordle for Thursday

Fun Activity

1. Gratitude Ghost pops
   1. Buy sucker and place tissue over to make a “ghost pop”
   2. Print gratitude message on slips of paper and use string to tie around sucker
   3. Hand out to team members

• What’s living in your Sneeze?  – Sneeze plates
  • Partner with your lab to obtain large blood agar plates a week before IIPW
  • Using a variety of team members, grow respiratory germs by sneezing/coughing on agar plates, use fingers/hands to contaminate plates after wiping nose without cleaning hands, etc.
  • Photograph or display results to demonstrate the importance of covering coughs and sneezes.
• Droplets & cough zone
  • Create poster with cough/sneeze distance pictures and/or videos
• Share respiratory etiquette word search and enter completed puzzle into facility drawing. Download APIC word searches.

Gratitude Message

We can’t mask our gratitude for everything you do!

External Resources

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Cover your cough (poster): https://www.cdc.gov/flu/pdf/protect/cdc_cough.pdf

American Lung Association: Each Breath Blog: How fast is a sneeze versus a cough? https://www.lung.org/blog/sneeze-versus-cough#:~:text=Sprays%20can%20be%20a%20little,create%20upwards%20of%20100%2C000%20droplets.

Ideas for Content

• One needle, one syringe, used only one time
• Protect yourself from sticks, use a sharps device with safety features
• Prevent bloodborne pathogen transmission: Clean and disinfect shared glucometers with every use
• Be aware- don’t share: Injectable pens (e.g., insulin) should be dedicated to only one person
• Technique matters – Injection safety requires an aseptic or sterile technique
• Product evaluation is a key component of healthcare and injection safety! Ensure your team has the right tools (e.g., medical equipment, disinfecting products) to get the job done safe and sound!

Wordle

Play the IIPW Wordle for Friday

Fun Activity

• Use fluorescent markers on the glucometer to assess the risk of bloodborne pathogen transmission and the effectiveness of cleaning the glucometer following the manufacturer’s instructions.
• Consider language from the New Jersey Department of Health Infection Control Assessment & Response (ICAR) Unit resource https://www.nj.gov/health/cd/documents/topics/hai/Fluorescent_Markers.pdf.

Gratitude Message

• Sharp move! Thank you for keeping the infection out of injections.
• I’m stuck on your aseptic technique! Thank you for maintaining safe standards of care.
• You’re a shot above the rest! Thank you for committing to safe care.
• Thank you for doing your part in making healthcare safe, one injection at a time.
• You “meter” to me! Thank you for cleaning and disinfecting shared glucometers after each use. You’ve reached a critical level of preventing the transmission of bloodborne pathogens.

External Resources

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Injection Safety: https://www.cdc.gov/injectionsafety/index.html

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: One & Only Campaign: https://www.cdc.gov/injectionsafety/one-and-only.html

Activities for Healthcare Professionals and Facilities

Here are ideas for events or activities to highlight the importance of infection prevention in your healthcare facility.

• Use IIPW logos and other sample materials to create signs, posters, banners, screensavers, and announcements for your facility.
• Print out the Infection Prevention and You infographics, brochures, flyers, and posters to educate patients about preventing infection.
• Draft a letter to your healthcare administration that includes details on IIPW and how IPs are essential to infection prevention and patient safety (above)
• Insert IIPW announcements in employee newsletters (above)
• Share APIC’s “Who Are IPs” factsheet and infographic
• Add an IIPW message to your email signature line
• Use fluorescent hand lotion to educate employees about hand hygiene
• Order IIPW branded merchandise for booths, displays, or prizes.
• Create IIPW tray liners for cafeteria food trays
• Take a “what’s wrong?” approach. Use photos or posters for staff to identify infection prevention mistakes
• Show infection prevention videos during staff meetings
• Offer employee flu shots during IIPW
• Promote safety nurses during IIPW – Have them staff booths/events, give flu shots; display their photos, feature their bios in the employee newsletter

Activities for Community Engagement:

Here are ideas for events or activities to help raise awareness about the importance of infection prevention in your community.

• With your local APIC chapter, reach out to your local health department, hospitals, and schools to organize a joint campaign to promote infection prevention to the public.
• Pass out hand sanitizers and literature about infection prevention to community members at bus/metro stops, grocery stores, or any other busy public areas.
• Organize a handwashing and “cover your cough” demonstration for students at local schools.
• Plan a flu vaccine clinic for the public and pass out literature on why infection prevention is important.
• Like and follow the APIC Facebook , the platform formerly known as Twitter/Twitter, and Instagram pages, and drive your followers there to engage them in conversations about the importance of our IPs and infection prevention.
• Use the Advocacy Toolkit to help guide your outreach and plan a visit to your state legislature.
• Contact your legislators to advocate on behalf of infection prevention through the APIC legislation page.