Abstract
The risk of encountering a variety of human-to-human infections, including emerging infectious diseases, should be adequately and appropriately addressed in the emergency department. However, no guidelines have been developed anywhere in the world based on sufficient evidence on infection control in the emergency department. Each facility examines and implements its own countermeasures. The Japanese Association for Acute Medicine has established the “Committee for Infection Control in the Emergency Department” in cooperation with the Japanese Association for Infectious Diseases, the Japanese Society for Infection Prevention and Control, the Japanese Society for Emergency Medicine, and the Japanese Society for Clinical Microbiology. A joint working group has been established to consider appropriate measures. This group conducted a comprehensive and multifaceted review of infection control measures for emergency outpatients and related matters, and released a Checklist for Infection Control in Emergency Departments. This checklist has been prepared so that even small emergency departments with few or no emergency doctors can control infection by following the checklist, without committing any major mistakes. The checklist includes a control system for infection control, education, screening, and vaccination, promptly responding to suspected infections, and managing the risk of infection in facilities. In addition, the timing of the check and the interval at which the check is performed are specified as categories. We hope that this checklist will contribute to improving infection control in the emergency department.
