Comparison of surveillance and control activities of infection control nurses and infection control laboratories in United States hospitals, 1976-1977

T. Grace Emori, Robert W. Haley, Julia S. Garner, Richie C. Stanley, David H. Culver, Bertram H. Raven, Howard E. Freeman

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

6 Scopus citations

Abstract

To study the impact of the professional background of infection control personnel, we compared the characteristics and activities of 107 infection control nurses (ICNs) with those of 13 infection control laboratorians (ICLs), all in hospitals with 300 beds or more. Although the two groups performed similarly in many respects, ICNs spent more time teaching, whereas ICLs spent more time and appeared more proficient in investigating outbreaks. Staff nurses at hospitals with ICNs found the infection control person more visible on the wards and more available for discussing infection control matters. ICNs appeared less hesitant to speak up to personnel not following correct handwashing techniques. ICNs and ICLs appear to offer different skills that should be considered when filling different infection control positions.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)3-16
Number of pages14
JournalAJIC: American Journal of Infection Control
Volume10
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 1982

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Epidemiology
  • Health Policy
  • Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health
  • Infectious Diseases

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Comparison of surveillance and control activities of infection control nurses and infection control laboratories in United States hospitals, 1976-1977'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this