This issue covers some of the most significant news from August. Topics include instrument reprocessing, food service hygiene, long-COVID, myocarditis and superbugs.

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Is That Instrument Safe To Use On A Patient? — ICCS team members continue to stress the risks associated with improper reprocessing of instruments and medical devices. We cannot emphasize enough the need to follow manufacturer instructions/instructions for use (IFUs). Our deficiency findings during onsite visits are often the result of failure to follow the instructions. If IFUs are unavailable, items should not be used unless nationally recognized guidelines (e.g., AAMI ST79, AAMI ST91) are explicit enough to reprocess effectively.

Infection Prevention Is Key in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit — A good two-part series in discussing infection prevention in the NICU from a physician and infection preventionist perspective.

What's in Your Hospital's Kitchen? The Basics of Food Service Hygiene — As ICCS Founder Phenelle Segal, RN, CIC, FAPIC, stated about this article, "As we enter a period of returning to pre-pandemic practice with the "new normal" in the forefront of our minds, it is important to remember that there are other 'issues' lurking in the background that were very much in the forefront prior to March 2020. Food service hygiene has always been a passion of mine when consulting for inpatient facilities. There are so many steps necessary to ensure safe food handling and serving our patients."

Most Reliable Estimates to Date Suggest 1 in 8 COVID-19 Patients Develop Long-COVID Symptoms — When analyzing COVID-19 infections, stats and talking points typically focus on cases, hospitalizations and deaths. But it's quite apparent more attention must be paid to long-COVID.

COVID-19 Infection Poses Higher Risk for Myocarditis Than Vaccines — New myocarditis study findings published in Circulation.

Safety Alert Regarding Use of Fecal Microbiota for Transplantation and Additional Safety Protections Pertaining to Monkeypox Virus — Possible challenge for refractory C. difficile patients who are highly dependent on fecal microbiota transfusion (FMT).

CDC Study Highlights Community Spread of Superbugs — U.S. surveillance data indicate infections caused by multidrug-resistant bacterial pathogens are moving beyond the healthcare setting.

New Method of Nasal Vaccine Delivery Could Lead to Better Vaccines for HIV and COVID-19 — Researchers have developed a way to effectively deliver vaccines through mucosal tissues in the nose.