Infection prevention the intention for all in healthcare

19 October 2021

This International Infection Prevention Week, October 17 to 23, the work of the state's infection prevention and control practitioners is more crucial than ever.

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to place enormous pressure on our health system and society and the work of this small but vital team is crucial in keeping our patients, staff and broader community safe. Led by experts at the Clinical Excellence Commission the infection prevention and control response in NSW is embedded across each local health district, hospital and specialty network.

We have seen this work evolve at pace during the pandemic as quarantine hotels were established and new procedures and expert advice for managing spread of the virus outside our hospitals was also required in settings like schools, aviation and aged care.

The efforts of this team are bolstered by the ongoing support, co-operation and diligent application of our broader health workforce. During the pandemic, infection prevention and control efforts in NSW have seen 433 pieces of PPE tested, 142 new guidance documents released, 13 training and safety videos developed, and 151,765 staff completed PPE mandatory training.

International Infection Prevention Week 2021 is themed "Make Your Intention Infection Prevention". It is a timely reminder to all of us at this stage of the pandemic that we cannot afford to loosen our grip on important matters such as appropriate use of PPE, social distancing in the workplace and tried and other tested infection prevention and control strategies.

Clinical Excellence Commission CE Carrie Marr said; "I am immensely proud of the work passion and dedication of all our infection prevention and control teams. Their contribution has been and continues to be unwavering and I urge all staff to use this week to continue to sharpen their own focus on infection prevention and control."