ECRI Institute Launches Online Infection Control Course to Improve Healthcare Construction Safety

PLYMOUTH MEETING, Pa., July 9, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Renovation and construction projects in healthcare environments pose unique infection control challenges for contractors and workers. ECRI Institute recognizes that taking the construction worker away from the field for training is costly and can delay project schedules. That's why ECRI has developed an online version of its respected Infection Control Risk Assessment (ICRA) for Healthcare Construction Activities training course.

The e-learning course teaches practical use of infection control risk assessments (ICRA) and management techniques for construction in the hospital setting. It provides a basic understanding of the infection control risk assessment process as it applies to healthcare construction, as well as the practical use of ICRA tools including containment, negative air, HEPA filtration, and monitoring techniques.

Supervisors and foremen who take the course will gain the tools and resources they need to make crucial decisions in the healthcare construction environment. The course is also designed to educate healthcare construction workers on how to work around everyday activities, including unexpected construction emergencies, and how to successfully and safely get their work done.

"This new online course gives participants all of the resources offered in the classroom and gives them the convenience to do it on their own time," said Luke Petosa, MSc, HEM, HEM-CC, director of the Center for Education and Training, ECRI Institute.

This three-part course also addresses standard protocol for meeting with the Joint Commission, the Centers for Disease Control, and the American Institute of Architects' requirements for healthcare construction. Each course builds upon the previous and the last course is a practical application exercise, designed to reinforce what was learned in the prior two courses.

Upon passing the examination, which can be completed at any time, students receive a certificate of completion and a resource toolkit that gives participants the means to determine practical solutions for construction requirements.

"The ICRA course provides a comprehensive review of everyday construction issues specific to healthcare that all healthcare construction professionals will find extremely valuable and will help participants gain a one-up on their peers," adds Petosa.

The cost of the training program is $225. Contact ECRI Institute for information about group registration discounts. For more information, visit the ICRA website, e-mail ICRA, call (610) 825-6000, ext. 5462, or write to us at 5200 Butler Pike, Plymouth Meeting, PA, 19462.

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About ECRI Institute
​ECRI Institute (www.ecri.org), a nonprofit organization, dedicates itself to bringing the discipline of applied scientific research to healthcare to discover which medical procedures, devices, drugs, and processes enable improved patient care. As pioneers in this science for more than 45 years, ECRI Institute marries experience and independence with the objectivity of evidence-based research. Strict conflict-of-interest guidelines promote objectivity. ECRI Institute is designated an Evidence-based Practice Center by the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. ECRI Institute PSO is listed as a federally certified Patient Safety Organization by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. ECRI Institute developed and implements the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Reporting System, a mandatory error and near-miss reporting program for Pennsylvania hospitals and other healthcare facilities, under contract to the Pennsylvania Patient Safety Authority, winner of the 2006 John M. Eisenberg Award. Find ECRI Institute on Facebook (www.facebook.com/ECRIInstitute) and on Twitter (www.twitter.com/ECRI_Institute).

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SOURCE ECRI Institute