Inova Research, Required Face Shields and DEA Scammers

The standards require that employers have the appropriate precautions to protect their workers based on their potential exposure risk on the job. It also requires that all employees be educated about exposure risks, appropriate precautions and their rights relating to the temporary standards.
Inova proactively enacted many of these standards early in the pandemic to protect our team members and patients from the spread of COVID-19, including universal masking, social distancing, strict adherence to handwashing and disinfection protocols and processes for team member symptom reporting, testing and return-to-work.
Changes team members will notice in light of the new standards include additional signage in break rooms and common areas with reminders of appropriate precautions.
All team members including employed and independent* medical staff have also been assigned training in HealthStream, as required by the DOLI. Training takes about 30 minutes and must be completed by Sept. 25.

Medical Staff will receive the HealthStream invitation link to their email on file with Centralized Credentialing. Follow the directions on the HealthStream landing page for entering your user name/password.
* For providers not employed by Inova: Talk with your employer to determine if they have created their own training or if Inova’s HealthStream training satisfies your employer’s DOLI requirement. HealthStream allows users to print a certificate confirming course completion.

Patient Identification – IV Pumps and Ventilator Control Screens

We are discontinuing the practice of allowing IV pumps and ventilator control screens to be staged outside of a patient’s room.
These practices were developed to address PPE and infection control concerns early in the pandemic. We have learned much since then regarding disease transmission, and we have an adequate supply of PPE for team members to safely care for patients with normal standards of care related to positive patient identification.
All patient identification (armband scanning, armband verifying and medication independent double checks) will return to the standard practice of occurring at the bedside.
Use of duplicate arm bands not attached to a patient to perform patient identification (lab collections, medication scanning, etc.) is strictly prohibited and a violation of our policies.

PPE Updates – Face Shields, Goggles and Face Mask Requirements

Because of the risk of asymptomatic and pre-symptomatic spread of COVID-19, protective eyewear is now required for all patient care. Face shields or goggles are appropriate protective eyewear. Eyeglasses are not considered protective eyewear.
Updates regarding the use of 3M 6000 elastomeric respirators now require the use of a face mask over the exhalation valve for source control (to protect patients and co-workers).
Instructions with photos on how to place the face mask over the 3M 6000 are available in What's New.

Sept. 1: MyChart and Instant Auto-Release of Some Routine Labs

On Sept. 1, Inova will begin sharing some routine lab results with patients via MyChart immediately after the results appear in Epic.

Over the past year, Inova has worked to improve the timing of routine lab release to patients:

Previously, lab results were auto-released to patients in three business days after resulting in Epic.
More than a year ago, Inova changed the timing of some routine labs release to 24 hours. This change was in response to patients who wanted timelier access to lab results, which was well received by patients and providers.
Based on patient feedback, these same set of results will be auto-released to patients in MyChart with a message that will explain the provider may not have reviewed these results at the time of the release. All other labs will continue to be auto-released in three business days or more.
We are currently updating the Epic tip sheet to reflect this change and will share in a future Huddle.

Providers should continue to follow up with their patients to help them understand their lab results in the context of their overall medical health.

COVID-19 Research Update

ACTIV: Coming Soon
Inova has been selected to participate in the NIH’s Accelerating COVID-19 Therapeutic Interventions and Vaccines (ACTIV) research program for prioritizing and speeding the development of the most promising treatments and vaccines for COVID-19.

Inova will collaborate with NIH and other organizations on two of the five research trials: ACTIV 2, an outpatient trial at Inova Fairfax, and ACTIV 3, an inpatient trial at Inova Alexandria. Both trials will evaluate the most promising drugs to treat COVID-19. Based on safety, side effects and efficacy, new drugs will be added throughout the course of the protocol. Outpatients who are interested in participating must have symptom onset within 10 days and a positive PCR or antigen test within 7 days. The study is one-time infusion and includes compensation. Interested patients can email: ihviresearch@inova.org.

Regeneron: Currently Enrolling
Inova has been selected to participate in an outpatient study for COVID-19 ambulatory patients. The study will evaluate the efficacy of two potential drugs that are humanized monoclonal antibodies that attack the virus and prevent it from entering cells for those who have a positive PCR swab or antigen test within 72 hours, and symptom onset within 7 days. The study is a one-time infusion with follow-up for 28 days and includes compensation for time and effort. Interested individuals can email: ihviresearch@inova.org.

Team Member Well-Being

Wellness Tip of the Day

Talk, don’t text. 90 percent of communication is non-verbal cues – tone of voice, eye contact, body language. They’re critical. If you have something sensitive to say, skip the text message, there’s too much space for misunderstanding. Texts are great for logistics but dangerous for conversations. – Behavioral Health

Team Member Well-Being Resources

Inova cares about the well-being of all our team members. As a reminder, the Team Member Well-Being resource is frequently updated with videos, articles and activities to help you and yours manage stress, anxiety and communication. Check out all the resources available at https://www.inova.org/tmcovid19/tmwellness.