What is an Infection Control Risk Assessment?
An infection control risk assessment is the process of preventing the spread of a highly contagious and infectious disease in the workplace, especially in the healthcare setting.
It is required that all offices and facilities should have an infection control policy in place. However, the infection control audit is different from industry to industry.
An infection control risk assessment is more than just documenting or informing authorities of the potential hazards. It serves as the foundation of an active infection and control prevention program. The guide evolves as goals and objectives change, but the framework remains solid to ensure the safety of the people in that area.
In this article, the following points are explained:
1. Why it is necessary to do an assessment
2. The 5 elements of a successful infection control program
3. Monitor infection control better with a digital tool
Why Conduct an Infection Control Risk Assessment
Risk assessments allow organizations to detect the presence of infection before it becomes present or severe. It can be easily stopped through early detection, minimize contamination, and eliminate its threat to the body.
Here are other benefits of having an infection control risk assessment:
- Creates a proactive strategy
Clearly defining the potential risks and hazards allows you to prevent and control them before they can become a problem and cause damage to life and property. - Protects workers’ health
Having tighter control on infections and other health hazards allows you to prevent them where possible or identify the sign of infection early on. With all the preventive measures in place, you can stop its spread early on, and fewer people get infected. - Creates awareness
Conducting an infection control audit educates your employees and makes them aware of the hazards and dangers they might be exposed to at work. Awareness will allow them to look out for and identify signs of an infectious outbreak. - Saves money
With a preventive and proactive stance against infections, you’ll be able to control and contain infections at their early stages. The cost of getting the infection under control is lesser than the cost of managing an outbreak. - Keeps you legally aligned
The infection control management legislation states that employers must protect their employees’ health, welfare, and safety at work. By having a thorough infection control audit, your business meets the legal requirements imposed by the government to protect the safety of your workers. - Protects your reputation
By meeting all the legal requirements regarding infection control, you maintain the excellent reputation of your company. On the other hand, a company with a history of infectious outbreaks will suffer a bad reputation. - Create an unlimited number of digital templates with the form builder. Lumiform also allows you to convert existing documents into a digital form.
- Take photos of security issues identified during internal audits via app and add them to the form immediately.
- Remedy breaches immediately and assign corrective actions on the spot, and follow up on implementation via the dashboard.
- Schedule regular infection control inspections to continuously monitor practices and actions at your facility.
- Save time and reduce costs by automatically generating paperless reports with the mobile app.
- Run analytics to track security trends and provide better training and education programs based on the information gathered.
- Securely manage and access data via the cloud.
If you think your organization needs training in infection control, there are professional training services that specialize in infection control risk assessment. It is recommended to have them immediately, especially if your workplace is considered high-risk.
5 Elements of a Successful Infection Control Program
A dynamic infection control program isn’t just about having an infection control checklist in place. Several factors are at play to ensure a successful program in your organization:
1. Communication
One of the often-overlooked factors when developing an infection control program is communication. The management should look at how messages are communicated internally — among the workers and health officers in the organization.
It would be best if you had a comprehensive plan to work with third parties, such as emergency medical services and emergency medical teams. There should be transparent processes to guide the employees on what to do in different risky or emergencies. There should also be an option for both routine and emergencies.
2. Employees
Organizations should measure how employees are managed. It includes expectations of proper immunization and proper screening of employees to prevent the spread of the infection. In workplaces where the probability of infection is high, health protocols must be strictly followed. There should also be a policy that keeps sick or infected employees away from others.
3. Environment
Employee performance depends on the tools they use. In other words, they will be effective at what they are doing if they have the tools they need to perform their tasks effectively.
4. Procedures
Risks depend on the type of tasks or procedures and being performed in the workplace. These risks go beyond setting up protocol during the actual procedure. Behavior and environmental factors that affect the health of employees should be taken into consideration. Being aware of the health history of each worker will help management identify which person is at higher risk. Consequently, proper first aid procedures can be done if emergencies happen.
5. Emergency Management
Emergencies of any kind can cause undue stress in the workplace. Health officers inside the organization should understand how critical their roles are in the event of an emergency. They should define expectations and develop strategies when coordinating with an emergency management team during emergency situations.
Monitor infection control risk assessments better with a digital tool
Implementing and continuously monitoring infection control processes is an important and enormous task for healthcare facility administrators. Legacy paper lists are prone to error and loss and also hinder rapid data exchange. Switching to digital forms management brings healthcare facilities greater peace of mind and gives them precious time to spend with their patients.
Lumiform is a powerful app and desktop software for audits, inspection, and assessments. The tool simplifies the process of conducting and monitoring inspection controls. Lumiform enables healthcare managers to:
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