Professional Support for Infection Prevention and Control

PROFESSIONAL SUPPORT FOR INFECTION PREVENTION AND CONTROL

Infection prevention and control are the responsibility of all staff (clinical, managerial and support staff). However, it is also an area that requires the leadership and expertise of clinicians specifically trained in infection prevention and control. All healthcare and social care organizations should have access to such expertise and should have an infection prevention and control team and committee to deliver the expert service and support for the staff of all the clinical and social care units. The infection control team in hospitals should generally comprise nursing, medical and pharmaceutical professionals with specific training and expertise in infection prevention and control and in antibiotic prescribing. The nurse should be a trained infection prevention and control practitioner and the medical input is generally provided by a consultant medical microbiologist or infectious diseases physician whose training and experience has included the specific area of HCAI prevention and control. The pharmacist member of the team should have specific experience and expertise in antimicrobial prescribing. The team has an important role in outbreak investigation and management but, most importantly, provides the guidance and support for the delivery and effective infection prevention and control throughout the hospital or health and social care organization.