NNU invited to join CDC’s HICPAC workgroup on infection prevention
National Nurses United (NNU), the largest union of registered nurses in the nation, is proud to announce that Jane Thomason, its lead industrial hygienist has been invited to join the workgroup of the Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee (HICPAC) of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Also, Lisa Baum, lead occupational safety and health representative at NNU affiliate New York State Nurses Association (NYSNA), has been invited to join HICPAC.
HICPAC is currently updating the CDC’s Isolation Precautions guidance, which shapes infection control and prevention practices in hospitals, nursing homes, and other health care settings across the nation and around the world. For many months, NNU has been urging the CDC to add experts, such as aerosol transmission scientists and frontline health care workers, to the HICPAC workgroup currently dominated by infection control staff from large hospital systems.
“This is a major win for nurses and other health care workers,” said NNU President Nancy Hagans, RN, who is also the president of NYSNA. “We are so proud that NNU and NYSNA will now be part of HICPAC discussions. Our members have essential insights and expertise when it comes to infection prevention. We need to ensure that health care workers and patients are protected in health care settings, especially as we prepare for potential Covid surges or other infectious diseases.”