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Highlighting Infection Prevention to Keep You Healthy

October 20, 2016   |   Alliance for Aging Research Team   |   Prevention, Infectious Disease

International Infection Prevention Week (IIPW) ends this Saturday, October 22! The week is an annual “awareness campaign to stimulate interest in and highlight the importance of infection prevention.”

Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) affect approximately 1.7 million Americans each year, making HAIs one of the most common complications of hospital care. Hospitalized older patients are two to five times more likely to develop HAIs than younger patients. While many infectious diseases and HAIs are preventable, they still cause serious complications among older adults.

The Alliance is committed to highlighting the importance of IIPW through educational materials that raise awareness about infectious disease, HAIs, and the importance of vaccinations.

Last year, the Alliance joined a White House effort to fight antibiotic resistance along with more than 150 groups. The White House Forum on Antibiotic Stewardship brought stakeholders together “to take positive action to improve antibiotic use and prescribing in the U.S.”

The Alliance is working to increase awareness of sepsis, a life-threatening condition that occurs when the body initiates an immune response against an infection. While sepsis can affect anyone, about two-thirds of sepsis cases occur among people over age 65, and nearly 40 percent of sepsis patients do not survive. Watch this “pocket film” that highlights the dangers of sepsis and how to recognize the condition.

The Alliance also has a wealth of resources highlighting the importance of vaccinations through an awareness campaign, a white paper on vaccinations, and a vaccines workshop kit for professionals.

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