Joint Commission and CDC Team Up on Ambulatory Infection Prevention

The Joint Commission and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are working on a new initiative to improve infection control in ambulatory care settings. The Adaptation and Dissemination Outpatient Infection PrevenTion (ADOPT) project will promote existing CDC infection prevention (IP) guidance while also making updated and alterations. The collaboration will involve:

• Evaluating organizations’ infection prevention and control guidelines and materials to find gaps between what’s done in practice and what’s in the CDC materials.
• Finding new ways and opportunities to raise awareness of IP guidance.
• Adapting model infection control plans for outpatient-focused professional organizations.
• Developing new ways of disseminating these materials and models to healthcare organizations to increase their reach, uptake, and adoption in outpatient settings.

There are 12 outpatient-focused professional organizations and 11 ambulatory healthcare systems participating in ADOPT. Other healthcare organizations or state health departments interested in learning more can reach out to Barbara Braun, PhD, at bbraun@jointcommission.org.

For examples of CDC ambulatory-focused infection prevention and control guidance, check out the following links:

• CDC Guide to Infection Prevention for Outpatient Settings: Minimum Expectations for Safe Care
• CDC Outpatient Settings Policy Options for Improving Infection Prevention
• CDC Basic Infection Control and Prevention Plan for Outpatient Oncology Settings
• The CDC One and Only Campaign