Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist's Director of Infection Prevention provides daily operational oversight and coordination of the Department of Infection Prevention & Health System Epidemiology, including technical, clerical and professional staff. Under the direction of the Medical Director of Infection Prevention, provides oversight and coordination of infection prevention related programs and policies across the Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Health (AHWFB) System.  Collaborates with the leaders of Quality and Safety, and Clinical Compliance and Regulatory Services to provide coordinated leadership and support level resources to achieve facility and system quality goals.

EDUCATION/EXPERIENCE: 

• BSN or BS in a related healthcare field. 
• Master's in Public Health or Healthcare Administration or related field preferred. 
• Five years' experience in Infection Control. 
• Three years' experience in a management/supervisory position.

LICENSURE, CERTIFICATION, and/or REGISTRATION:

• Current licensure as Board certified in Infection Control and  Registered Nurse (RN) in the State of North Carolina preferred.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:

1. Exemplifies the AHWFB Values and Code of Conduct, while striving to identify compliance risk through department led risk assessments, system monitoring, and periodic audits, and reporting any identified violation to Legal Services and Corporate Compliance Departments.  Ensures immediate action is taken on any issues identified through a self-assessment or by Legal Services or Corporate Compliance; that policies are developed or revised as necessary; and that efforts are made to ensure a positive and compliant work environment for all employees.
2. Demonstrates leadership in the areas of:
   1. Human Resources
   2. Financial Management
   3. Planning
   4. Directing
   5. Continuous quality improvement
   6. Institutional support and representation
   7. Customer service
3. Directs the overall day-to-day activities of the Infection Prevention Department for the AHWFB System.
4. Directly supervises and mentors the Infection Preventionists for the WFBH System. Responsible for employee performance appraisals and ongoing evaluation of staff. Maintains effective operations and employee morale by appropriately handling hiring, orientation/training, performance review, and disciplinary actions within established policy.
5. Under the direction of the Medical Director:
   1. Assists in directing a comprehensive Health System Infection Prevention Program to include implementation of policies, procedures, and standards of practice targeted at healthcare associated and communicable disease prevention consistent with accreditation and regulatory requirements.
   2. Provides oversight and coordinates the current, active surveillance program. Manages current infection control databases and assures data integrity.  Provides comprehensive and meaningful reports that include statistical analysis and research findings from studies for the Infection Prevention Committee Meetings and other AHWFB System Committees as determined by Administration. Recommends follow-up actions to the Medical Director and monitors implementation.
   3. Implements processes to monitor for timely identification and accurate designation of healthcare associated infections; oversees timely reporting pursuant to regulatory requirements.
   4. Evaluates surveillance activities and outcomes related to healthcare associated and occupationally acquired infections with consideration to populations served, services provided, patient acuity, high-risk procedures and critical pathogens. Collaborates with the leadership team to develop the annual Infection Prevention plan and goals.
   5. Provides oversight for investigation of infection control issues, concerns, and trends/patterns; working with the Health System Epidemiologist assures implementation of appropriate interventions.
   6. Provides oversight for the standards and regulatory compliance (e.g. TJC, DHSR, CMS and OSHA) for the WFBH System facilities and associated clinics.
   7. Directs development, implementation and review of an ongoing program of Infection Prevention education and training for Health System employees, contract staff, volunteers, physicians, others.
   8. Identifies leading practices for Infection Prevention and shares/integrates best practices within the AHWFB System. Identifies opportunities for improvement, and leads/participates in the Quality and Performance Improvement teams/activities to provide content and expertise to meet system wide goals, and achieve clinical outcome improvements.
   9. Provides oversight for infection prevention related adherence to sterilization, high level disinfection, and point of use practices.
   10. Collaborates with Employee Health Services, Environmental Health and Safety, Environmental Services, Engineering, and Facilities Services to develop policies related to disease and infection prevention. Provides oversight for infection prevention recommendations and response to construction and other environment of care activities.
6. Actively participates in all Emergency Management activities, including training, monitoring, and testing of systems.
7. Assures Infection Prevention staff participation in various committee/team activities as requested and/or required.
8. Reviews national evidence based Infection Prevention and Safety standards and procedures, interventions, and educational activities to reduce the risk for healthcare associated infections and improve patient outcomes.
9. Collaborates with state and local Health Directors and Epidemiologists, and related federal and state funded positions in policy development, investigations and recommendations for actions related to public reporting of healthcare associated infections, outbreaks, epidemics and bioterrorism readiness.
10. Collaborates with Employee Health Services, Environmental Health and Safety, Environmental Services, Engineering and Facilities Services to develop policies related to disease and infection prevention. Provides oversight on infection prevention recommendations related to construction and other environment of care activities.
11. Limits the distribution of protected health information (PHI) to the information reasonably necessary to do the job including sharing information only on a need to know basis for work purposes.
12. Assists in Provision of information and participates in the preparation of written justification for the capital and operational budget request for the department. Assists in managing the annual departmental budget, ensures effective and appropriate utilization of resources, and justifies budget variances on a monthly/quarterly basis.

SKILLS/QUALIFICATIONS:

• Exceptional oral and written communication skills
• Ability to present information in a clear and concise manner
• Demonstrates ability to manage/supervise a combination of staff, including clinical, laboratory and clerical
• Demonstrates skill in conflict resolution
• Extensive knowledge of basic principles and standards of infection control
• Extensive knowledge of state and federal regulations governing infection control
• Knowledge of the principles, theories, and methodologies of process improvement
• Knowledge of the principles of growth and development and demonstration of the skills and competency appropriate to the ages, culture, developmental stages, and special needs of the patient population served
• Ability to problem-solve/critical thinking and possesses customer service skills
• Ability to instruct, develop educational materials, and to evaluate the progress of program participants
• Ability to maintain a professional demeanor in all situations

WORK ENVIRONMENT:

• Ability to maintain effective working relationships with fellow employees, patients, families, and physicians
• Clean, comfortable office environment

EDUCATION/EXPERIENCE: 

• BSN or BS in a related healthcare field. 
• Master's in Public Health or Healthcare Administration or related field preferred. 
• Five years' experience in Infection Control. 
• Three years' experience in a management/supervisory position.

LICENSURE, CERTIFICATION, and/or REGISTRATION:

• Current licensure as Board certified in Infection Control and  Registered Nurse (RN) in the State of North Carolina preferred.

About Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist

Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist is a pre-eminent academic health system based in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist is part of Advocate Health, which is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, and is the fifth-largest nonprofit health system in the United States, created from the combination of Atrium Health and Advocate Aurora Health. Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist’s two main components are an integrated clinical system – anchored by Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center, an 885-bed tertiary-care hospital in Winston-Salem – that includes Brenner Children’s Hospital, five community hospitals, more than 300 primary and specialty care locations and more than 2,700 physicians; and Wake Forest School of Medicine, the academic core of Atrium Health Enterprise and a recognized leader in experiential medical education and groundbreaking research that includes Wake Forest Innovations, a commercialization enterprise focused on advancing health care through new medical technologies and biomedical discovery.

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