In This October 2020 Issue The Flu Season Is Here, and It Is Time to Get the Flu Vaccine COVID-19 Webinars: On-Demand and Upcoming Spanish-Language Resources Available to Help Support Kidney Patients and Their Families Roll Up Your Sleeves for the Annual Flu Vaccine Share the Is a Transplant Right for Me? Video Sample Infection Prevention and Control Quality Improvement Plan New Tools Added to the End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) National Coordinating Center (NCC) Patient Grant Library  Coming Soon―ESRD NCC Resources Under Development Mark Your Calendar Kidney Community Emergency Response (KCER): Shake Out 2020

Patient and Family Engagement

The Flu Season Is Here, and It Is Time to Get the Flu Vaccine It is that time of year again—flu season. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is encouraging healthcare workers to get vaccinated. This guidance is designed to protect patients. Healthcare professionals also benefit because this will help to protect them and their families from the flu. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recommends increasing the number of dialysis patients who receive the flu vaccine this year. CMS is asking dialysis professionals to talk to their patients about the importance of getting the flu vaccine.  Everyone is at risk for getting the flu, but for some people the flu can cause serious illness. Those most at risk include people: 50 years or older With kidney, heart, liver, or brain/nerve disorders Who have weak immune systems Living in nursing homes and other long-term-care facilities The flu vaccine has been shown to reduce flu-related illnesses and the risk of serious flu complications that can result in hospitalization or death. To get more information and resources to share about the flu and flu prevention, visit www.cdc.gov/flu.

COVID-19 Webinars: On-Demand and Upcoming As the Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic changes, so are the ESRD NCC COVID-19 webinar events. The events highlight patient COVID-19 experiences and healthcare organization best practices in combating the virus. You can join upcoming COVID-19 webinar events or watch an on-demand webinar at any time. Continuing education credits (CEUs) are offered for the professional COVID-19 webinar events. In the coming months, the ESRD NCC will be publishing a calendar of future events so you can plan to attend. Upcoming topics include: Receiving a Kidney Transplant During COVID-19 COVID-19 vs. the Flu COVID-19 and the Holiday Season Learn more about the COVID-19 webinar events here: www.kidneycovidinfocenter.com. Include stakeholders and patients in your area by sharing the event flyer located here: COVID-19 Webinar Flyer.

Spanish-Language Resources Available to Help Support Kidney Patients and Their Families The ESRD NCC is proud to announce it is expanding its patient education offerings. The National Patient and Family Engagement-Learning and Action Network (NPFE-LAN) resources are now available in Spanish. These resources were developed by patients for patients. With the expanded Spanish-language resources, the ESRD NCC is enhancing its support to ESRD Networks and kidney stakeholders to reach their patient and family engagement goals. The Spanish-language resources focus on: Infection prevention Selecting and staying with a home dialysis therapy Moving successfully through the kidney transplant process.   The resources can be found on the ESRD NCC website.

Roll Up Your Sleeves For the Annual Flu Vaccine Watch this informative video from the CDC on why it is important to get your flu shot.

Share the Is a Transplant Right for Me? Video Take two minutes to watch the new Is a Kidney Transplant Right for Me? video. Its creation was the vision of the ESRD NCC Transplant Affinity Group patient subject matter experts. The video takes you through the kidney transplant process. It provides a quick overview of the transplant center, things to consider when selecting a transplant center, the transplant team, and how a patient may be able to get a transplant faster. Watch now and share it with your kidney community on social media! You can find additional kidney transplant resources, including the Transplant 101 series of handouts on the ESRD NCC website.

Sample Infection Prevention and Control Quality Improvement Plan There’s a new resource to help dialysis facilities improve their infection control. It is the Sample Infection Prevention and Control Quality Improvement Plan. The tool can be used by facilities that need to develop an improvement plan due to high infection rates. It is written to help facilities with infection control deficiencies identified in internal or external audits.  The ESRD Networks are encouraged to share the resource with all facilities and stakeholders in the Network service area. Download the form now. If you have or receive feedback on the form once it is in use, please share it with us at nccinfo@hsag.com.

New Tools Added to the ESRD NCC Patient Grant Library The ESRD NCC is making it easier for patients and family members to find and apply for grants. The Patient Grant Library was created to assist patients with ESRD and their families in fundraising efforts to support education, advocacy, and kidney care needs. The Patient Grant Library offers links to grant resources that lead to grant funding opportunities from a variety of government and private foundations. Many grant applications ask for data. It can show why your program or project idea is needed. Check out the new Data Search section of the Patient Grant Library to find reliable and trusted sources for information.

Coming Soon―ESRD NCC Resources Under Development Here are a few items we are creating for you: Debunking the Myths About COVID-19 handout Kidney Hub Network Toolkit October 2020 ESRD Directory Update Caregiver Peer Connection Call Flu Vaccine poster Ease of Flu Vaccine video

Mark Your Calendar

October 1–31, National Health Literacy Month Health Literacy Month is a time for organizations and individuals to promote the importance of understanding health information. You can help celebrate the occasion by taking action and finding ways to improve health communication. To help you start the conversation about health literacy, visit the National Library of Medicine Reading Club website. October 1–31, National Breast Cancer Awareness Month October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, an annual campaign to increase awareness of the disease. During that month, advocates will be campaigning to help women get access to the breast cancer drugs they need and share information women need to know about checking their breasts. To learn more about Breast Cancer Awareness Month, visit the National Breast Cancer website. October 1–31, National Dental Hygiene Month October is National Dental Hygiene Month, an annual reminder for the nation to practice the daily habits that promote healthy teeth and gums. Without proper care, such as daily brushing, regular dental cleanings, and checkups, plaque can build up on teeth, leading to tooth decay, tooth loss, and gum disease. October 1–31, National Mental Illness Awareness Month One in five people will experience a mental illness during their lifetime. People with mental illness say that the social stigma attached to mental health conditions and the discrimination they experience can make their hard times worse and make it harder to recover. There are tools available to help everyone improve their mental health and increase their resiliency. Learn more at the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) website. October 10, World Mental Health Day World Mental Health Day is observed every year on October 10. It raises public awareness about mental health issues worldwide. The day promotes open discussion on illnesses, as well as investments in prevention and treatment services. October 15, National Latino AIDS Day This day encourages prevention, testing, and open dialogue concerning human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). More than one million people in the United States are living with HIV/AIDS, and one in seven of them are not aware they have it. Throughout the year, awareness days focus on specific communities and their unique needs concerning prevention and awareness. This observance focuses on the Latino and Hispanic communities. For tips on how you can help observe National Latino AIDS Day, visit the CDC website. October 18–24, Healthcare Quality Week This week is dedicated to honoring the contributions professionals have made to improve healthcare quality. It is also an opportunity to bring greater awareness to the profession of healthcare quality.

Shake Out 2020 Are you prepared? What you do to prepare now, before the next big earthquake, will help you survive and recover from a real earthquake. Remember, earthquakes can strike any location at any time, which is why everyone, everywhere, should know how to protect themselves should an earthquake occur. The Great Shake Out will occur in houses, workplaces, schools, and public spaces on October 15, 2020. Register for Great Shake Out Earthquake Drills at ShakeOut.org/register to join your community in practicing earthquake safety.  The Great Shake Out Earthquake Drills also provide an annual opportunity for healthcare organizations and facilities to practice earthquake safety and other aspects of emergency planning along with millions of others across the United States and worldwide. Healthcare organizations of all sizes can use the drills to get their staff, volunteers, partners, and patients, involved, and prepared for being safe during earthquakes.  For additional information on how your participation in the Great Shake Out Earthquake Drills can meet the training and testing requirements of the CMS Emergency Preparedness Final Rule visit: https://www.shakeout.org/healthcare/index.html.

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This material was prepared the End Stage Renal Disease National Coordinating Center (ESRD NCC) contractor, under contract with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The contents presented do not necessarily reflect CMS policy nor imply endorsement by the U.S. Government. FL-ESRD NCC-7N51TB-10012020-01