Danko Co-Authors Respiratory Care Services APIC Chapter
With the emergence of COVID-19, the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) recognized a need to update the Respiratory Care Services chapter and highlight the connection of respiratory care services and infection control practices. Jess Danko, MSHA, RRT, LTC-CIP, program director for the South Dakota Foundation for Medical Care and APIC South Dakota member, collaborated to update the 2014 version of the chapter.
In this update, new definitions and key highlights are included over topics such as aerosol generating procedures, oxygen therapy, personal protective equipment (PPE), ventilator associated events, and other pertinent respiratory therapy practices for infection prevention and control. Danko shared, “We learned a lot during the height of COVID and getting back to the fundamentals of infection prevention and control practices in the respiratory scope of work is one of the areas that became evident to me.”
Members of the infection control community, that are APIC members, can access and read the chapter text online. For the infection preventionist that is not currently a member of APIC, the text and membership are available for purchase at APIC.
Elizabeth Healy, BSN, RN, CIC, education chair for APIC, added, “APIC South Dakota members have access to education from subject matter experts, like Jess and many others, with quarterly educational opportunities and networking opportunities with Infection Preventionists throughout South Dakota.”
Many respiratory care procedures bypass the natural barriers of the body and can easily introduce infections into a patient's lungs and airways. As a respiratory therapist, Danko has seen poor infection control practices take place in the healthcare setting. This then led to her desire to provide infection control education on appropriate practices when completing respiratory services.
“The infection prevention and control sector are typically composed of nurses within the healthcare setting. Respiratory therapists are not generally thought of as experts in infection control. However, they work within many areas of the healthcare setting and are involved in numerous practices that require pertinent knowledge in infection control,” explained Danko.
Danko’s background in respiratory therapy provided a foundation for infection prevention and control. As part of the South Dakota Project Firstline team, she offers training, and education on infection prevention and control practices, including respiratory care services.
Healy added, “APIC South Dakota is proud to support Jess Danko, an APIC South Dakota member, with the upcoming release of the updated Respiratory Care Services chapter of the online APIC Text. APIC South Dakota invites anyone interested in becoming a member to email us at apicsouthdakota@gmail.com.”