NURSES
E7
MAY 2023
THE NORTH PLATTE TELEGRAPH
Helping prevent infections
ADOBE STOCK
GREEN SHOOT MEDIA T pandemic. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention set out to provide free resources and additional training for health care workers so that they can prevent the spread of infectious diseases. They’re calling it Project Firstline and it brings together more than 75 healthcare, academic and public health partners to help frontline health care workers protect their patients, he role nurses play in preventing infection has never been more clear than it has been since the start of the COVID-19 A closer look at Project Firstline
their coworkers and themselves from infectious disease threats. The free resources come in a variety of formats and the CDC said they are designed “to empower and enable health care workers to think critically about infection control, using adult learning principles, educational best practices, CDC recommendations and the science that informs them.” When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, it made the medical world even more aware of the gaps in infection control knowledge and practice in healthcare settings nationwide. Project Firstline is an attempt to close those gaps. Listening to health care workers The CDC committed to developing the resources hand-in-hand with health care workers, recognizing their knowledge and expertise. They asked them how they did their job and worked with them rather than dictating policy
to them. They also made it a priority to provide all of their content to all health care workers regardless of previous education, background knowledge or job status. Respecting time and bandwidth Nurses work long hours and have little time available for training, especially outside of work hours. They’re often exhausted and after these past several years, many are on the verge of burnout and almost all have experienced trauma in the workplace. With this in mind, content is delivered in bite-sized segments tailored for practice and designed to be integrated into the work day. In an effort to meet healthcare workers where they are, it teaches the why behind infection control practices. The information has been translated into Spanish and several Asian
languages. Training materials and educational resources are available in many different formats, recognizing the diverse needs and learning preferences of health care nurses. They include in-person training, online training, videos, infographics, training toolkits and interactive tools. Project Firstline accomplishments In the first two years since it has launched, Project Firstline and its partners have created more than 200 educational products and training materials on health care infection control. It has hosted more than 750 educational events reaching more than 65,000 health care workers. Their various platforms have received more than 84 million views. Nurses can sign up for the Project Firstline newsletter or access educational materials online.
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