Jackson: Always Prepared for Zika Virus and Other Infectious Diseases

Over the course of the last few months, the news has been filled with stories about the spread of the Zika virus throughout South and Central America, as well as the Caribbean.

As a public health system, our community expects Jackson to be the most prepared, and consider us experts in the face of any public health concern. We want to assure you that we closely monitor the development of any infectious diseases and continuously take all precautions to ensure that our staff is educated on specific protocols that will help maximize the safety of our patients, guests, and employees.

As always, Jackson Health System continues to strengthen its efforts to prepare for and fight against all infectious diseases, starting with education. It is essential to any preparedness efforts, which is why our employees have the facts about all infectious diseases and are well-trained on our response protocols. Teams of educators across the organization work diligently to ensure everyone is prepared for possible cases of these illnesses and to minimize risk of exposure to both patients and staff.

 In order to remain vigilant and focused on safety and patient care, Jackson enhances its readiness to combat infectious diseases by utilizing a few key tools:

• Infection-control team – Consists of dedicated leaders that personally oversee any suspected cases. These individuals are in the unit directing every aspect of care, confirming with their own eyes that employees know the protocols and follow them closely.
• Hands-on training – Comprised of one-on-one training sessions and demonstrations of proper procedures and protocols, including full, personal protective equipment preparations.
• Procedures and protocols – Updated protocols and procedures on infectious diseases, including adjusting preliminary intake questionnaires, early preparation, and detailed planning.
• Isolation – Appropriate isolation areas are available and equipped in every hospital. In some cases, we are also prepared to build additional isolation spaces using temporary construction materials.

Jackson Health System takes your health and safety very seriously. As we continue to learn new and effective methods of protection against infectious diseases, we continue to make enhancements to our practices while maximizing the margin of safety for our clinical teams, our patients, and our community.

Check back here for more information and tips on how to avoid exposure of highly-infectious diseases.