OVERVIEW: What every practitioner needs to know Are you sure your patient has Lyme disease? What should you expect to find? Lyme disease, which is caused by the spirochete Borrelia burdorferi, can be divided into three clinical stages. Stage 1: The hallmark of stage 1 is erythema migrans, the characteristic circular, slowly expanding rash that…
OVERVIEW: What every practitioner needs to know Are you sure your patient has bartonellosis? What should you expect to find? Bartonella species are small gram-negative intracellular organisms. Three species cause the majority of human disease, and each causes a distinct clinical syndrome: Bartonella henselae, Bartonella quintana and Bartonella bacilliformis. Bartonella henselae is the cause of…
How have lessons learned from the severe acute respiratory syndrome and H1N1 pandemics impacted infection control? The pandemics of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and influenza H1N1 are recent memories that have heightened the sense of concerns by health care epidemiologists for rapid responses to new and emerging pathogens. There is always uncertainty initially about…
What are the key concepts related to leadership, management and politics? Leaders are recognized by the number and dedication of their followers. Some of the qualities of leaders include their integrity and authenticity, their decision making in the face of controversy, their humanity and ethics, their sense of social justice, and their big ideas that…
What are the key concepts related to horizontal versus vertical safety programs in infection control? The key concept is that horizontal programs seek to reduce all infections at a given anatomic site (all pathogens), whereas vertical programs focus on reducing single pathogens (e.g., methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus [MRSA] surgical site infections). Horizontal programs, if effective, have…
