Under legislation passed last year, ESDs or their service providers must designate an Infection Control Officer and notify the local health authorities and local hospitals of the Infection Control Officer's contact information.
The Infection Control Officer must have "a health care professional license or specific training in infection control." ESDs or service providers may need to train someone for this position or contract with someone to do this. The Infection Control Officer "acts as liaison between the entity and the destination hospital, and monitors all follow-up treatment provided to the affected emergency response employee or volunteer. The new law and rule "require a licensed hospital to notify a health authority and designated infection control officer in certain instances when an emergency response employee or volunteer may have been exposed to a reportable disease during the course of duty from a person delivered to the hospital under conditions that were favorable for transmission." An emergency response employee or volunteer is defined as "an individual acting in the course and scope of employment or service as a volunteer as emergency medical service personnel, a peace officer, a detention officer, a county jailer, or a firefighter." The reportable diseases are:
DSHS adopted the final rule adopted June 24 . (Texas Register June 24, 2016)(25 TAC 97.11). The statutory reference is Health and Safety Code Section 81.012. CLICK HERE TO VIEW THE BILL CLICK HERE TO VIEW A BILL ANALYSIS
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