What are the responsibilities and job description for the Infection Preventionist position at Adventist Health?
In a bustling cosmopolitan area surrounded by nature, Adventist Health Portland has been one of the area's leading healthcare providers since the 1800s. In partnership with OHSU, we are comprised of a 302-bed hospital, 11 medical offices, home care services, comprehensive cancer care and a vast scope of award-winning services located throughout East Portland and the surrounding areas. There are many outdoor adventures readily available, including carving the snow at North America's only year-round ski resort, hiking along the Columbia River Gorge or taking a day trip to the unmatched beauty of the Oregon coast.
Job Summary:
Performs surveillance, analysis, interpretation and reporting of Hospital Acquired Infections (HAI) and infection prevention education. Writes and updates infection prevention policies and procedures to insure compliance with regulatory standards of The Joint Commission (TJC) Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Centers for Medicaid/Medicare Services (CMS,) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other nationally organized agencies recommendations and requirements. Is proficient in hospital epidemiology principles and is responsible for the surveillance, analysis, interpretation and reporting of hospital acquired infections.
Job Requirements:
Education and Work Experience:
- Bachelor's Degree in Nursing (BSN): Preferred
- Two years' experience in acute care setting.: Preferred
Licenses/Certifications:
- Registered Nurse (RN) licensure in the state of practice: Preferred
- Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) or Basic Life Support (BLS OR HS-BLS OR RQIBLS) certification: Preferred
- Certified Infection Control (CIC): Required within three years of hire
Essential Functions:
- Conducts ongoing surveillance investigation and follow up of infections through review of admission diagnoses, microbiology culture results, isolation orders, patient records, consultation requests, post-discharge surveillance, and autopsy findings. Conducts environmental rounds in all inpatient and outpatient care areas. Analyzes trends and risk factors, and designs and evaluates prevention and control strategies. Participates in investigation and reporting of unusual hospital infection outbreaks.
- Compiles and interprets surveillance reports for committees and specialty areas on a regular basis. Collects data in support of epidemiological studies. Determines the source of problems and makes recommendations for correction and improvement.
- Assists in the organization of regularly scheduled infection control-related meetings and dissemination of recommendations hospital-wide. Participates in quality/performance improvement activities by assessing, monitoring, and measuring nosocomial infections and evaluating outcomes on a continuous basis.
- Plans, organizes, develops and implements new employee orientation and educational programs for employees (including administrative and ancillary services) to convey specialized knowledge and skills of awareness of existence of infections. Includes techniques for avoidance and preventive measures to ensure an infection-free environment for hospital employees, patients and visitors.
- Performs other job-related duties as assigned.
Organizational Requirements:
Adventist Health is committed to the safety and wellbeing of our associates and patients. Therefore, we require that all associates receive all required vaccinations, including, but not limited to, measles, mumps, flu (based on the seasonal availability of the flu vaccine typically during October-March each year), COVID-19 vaccine (required in CA, HI and OR) etc., as a condition of employment, and annually thereafter. Medical and religious exemptions may apply.
