Sara Dechow

 work in hospitals and government agencies.  complete general nursing duties while working to reduce the risk of infection  complete specific epidemiology roles  epidemiological investigations  identifying potential risks of infection transmission.  work with other departments within the hospital or government -> make new or change current policies or procedures

 While registered nursing fall into the epidemiologist category when looking at statics  Currently 5100 epidemiologists that are certified in the United States

 Practice setting- government health care settings, hospitals, doctor’s offices  Patient population- depending on the case the patient population can be anywhere from individual patients to the entire population

1. obtain a nursing degree (bachelor’s degree preferred) 2. become a licensed nurse by passing the NCLEX 3. gain experience in the nursing field-> at a minimum of two years most employers will want 3-5 years of clinical experience 4. while gaining experience focus on preventing disease either by getting a job in that department of the hospital or attending infection control meetings 5. Obtain a master’s degree 6. get certified in infection control and epidemiology (voluntary but many employers will prefer) 7. maintain certification

 Key skills needed: patience, compassion, attention to detail, knowledge of infection control measures  Some of the main responsibilities of nurse epidemiologist include preventing the spread of infection  1. studies on human disease and possible treatments  2. investigate diseases to determine cause, risk factors and/ or mode of transmission  3. communicating research findings to health care professionals or the public and educate public, healthcare workers and patients about infectious diseases with transmission and possible treatments  What makes it different: Other nursing roles will implement the changes on their unit however most will not prevent the spread of infection at the research level

 California Senate Bill 277  Currently before attending school one must be vaccinated for pertussis, measles, and mumps  Unless one has a religious or personal objection  This would eliminate the personal objection part of the current bill  How relates to epidemiology  If it passes Fewer children will not be vaccinated and will reduce future outbreaks like the one at Disneyland  If it does not pass Children will be allowed to attend school putting themselves and others at risk

 Become a leader in local chapter of APIC (organization)  Educating and advocating for the community and having all necessary education (Professional)  Talk with others about how to reduce the risk of infectious diseases, giving presentations in doctor’s offices on research data or going to elementary schools and teaching others how to wash their hands (Community)

 patient advocacy will be different than most other nursing roles and can sometimes be entire populations.  ensuring that the proper procedures were met and followed other patients do no catch the infectious disease  trying to figure out the source of the disease to prevent others from getting it and passing new  updating current policies when they are not working to help reduce the risk of the pathogen spreading.

 Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology  Required to join:  career must follow under the pretenses of being involved in infection control or epidemiology  Benefits of joining:  furthering education with conferences  networking  lead to career advancement opportunities  opportunities of being a leader within the community and profession

 Overall looks great  Job outlook is great  bacteria are becoming more resistant to antibiotics, leading to antibacterial resistance  many of the bugs can be prevented if one educated on the subject educates others about preventing the infection

 Epidemiologists. (n.d.). Retrieved April 11, 2015, from and-social science/epidemiologists.htm  Nurse Epidemiologist Career. (n.d.). Retrieved April 11, 2015, from e-epidemiologist/  Text. (n.d.). Retrieved April 11, 2015, from billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id= SB 277