Colleges move to limit Swine Flu's spread
Atlanta Journal Constitution
Erica Goldfine, a senior at American University in Washington, D.C., returned to school this semester to find a new item in her college handbook, right after academic policies on cheating: emergency preparedness procedures for the H1N1 swine flu. It wasn't a total surprise: Goldfine had been receiving e-mails all summer on the subject. She and other students (there are more than 9,000 of them at American University) have been told that they are to stay home if they're even a tiny bit sick. The same is expected of professors. More

How Manuka honey helps fight infection
Infection Control Today
Manuka honey may kill bacteria by destroying key bacterial proteins. Dr. Rowena Jenkins and colleagues from the University of Wales Institute - Cardiff investigated the mechanisms of manuka honey action and found that its anti-bacterial properties were not due solely to the sugars present in the honey. The work was presented this week at the Society for General Microbiology's meeting at Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh. More

MRSA activists to lift the veil of secrecy on World MRSA Day
Medical News Today
MRSA Survivors Network, the Chicago-based nonprofit and official organization for World MRSA Day, along with fellow MRSA activists will lift the veil of secrecy surrounding MRSA. The history making inaugural kick-off event will be held at Loyola University Chicago on October 1st. The 2009 theme is "You Can Not Change What You Do Not Acknowledge". More

Tracking light-emitting bacteria during infection
Medical News Today
By attaching light-emitting genes to infectious bacteria in an experimental system, researchers at University College, Cork, Ireland, have been able to track where in the body the bacteria go - giving an insight into the path of the infection process leading to the development of more targeted treatments. More

Linen managers strive for quality, controlling costs
American Laundry News
Linen managers are becoming increasingly important in this struggling economy. Many healthcare providers are looking for ways to reduce costs without affecting the quality of patient care. Proper linen utilization is becoming a key area of concern. Therefore, it’s time again to review the linen manager’s important role in an organization. More

CDC to distribute $40 million to fight health care infections
Occupational Health & Safety
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has announced plans to distribute $40 million to state health departments to help prevent health care-associated infections (HAIs). More

Basic IT infrastructure key to health care's future
Modern Healthcare
Our healthcare system is badly broken and in crisis. Study after study report the bad news: Up to 98,000 preventable accidental deaths in hospitals annually; getting research results into clinical practice takes an average of 17 years; up to $300 billion spent annually on treatments with no health yield; access to specialty care is highly dependent on geography; patients who are minimally involved in their own health decisions; public fear of identity theft and loss of privacy; fragmented and untimely public health surveillance; meaningful use of health information technology occurs in only a small proportion of clinical environments; and the litany goes on. More