Introduction to Infection Prevention and Control

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This course is part of our Foundational Course in Infection Prevention and Control. See below for links to other modules!

Course Overview

The Virginia Infection Prevention Training Center’s foundational module, Introduction to Infection Prevention & Control, provides an overview of healthcare-associated infection (HAIs) and infection prevention best practices. Topics include the impact of HAIs on our health system, the three most prevalent HAIs, proper precautions for mitigating risk of infection, core elements of an infection prevention program, and resources available to infection prevention programs.

Target Audience

Target audience for this course are healthcare professionals beginning their experience in infection prevention and control training and who have little to no practice in infection prevention and control concepts.

Audience examples include novice infection preventionists, clinical healthcare professionals, and nonclinical healthcare leaders, such as environmental services managers, who are seeking foundational infection prevention and control knowledge.

Overall Learning Objectives

Give an overview of healthcare-associated infectious diseases and how they impact our healthcare system in the United States as well as globally
Describe the purpose of an infection prevention program and define its role within the healthcare system
List the major types of healthcare-associated infections and define their impact on hospital settings
Identify the core activities of an infection prevention program
Compare individual, community, organizational, and government agency roles in infection prevention

Continuing Education Credit

Continuing education (CE) credit is available for this course from 2/20/24 to 2/20/27. To claim credit, please watch this video in its entirety, then visit the VCU Continuing Medical Education activity page to obtain your credit.

How Did We Do?

We appreciate your feedback and suggestions on how we can improve this course for future participants. Please complete this anonymous evaluation for Introduction to Infection Prevention and Control.

Resources
There are a number of organizations and government agencies that provide a wealth of resources and guidance for infection prevention and control. Here are our top ten resources.

CDC – The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is an important and primary source for information and guidance on infection prevention and control. Also includes infection prevention training, posters, and checklists.
WHO – The World Health Organization is another important source for information and guidance on IPC. Also offers free resources, educational materials, and has excellent hand hygiene and training tools.
SHEA – The Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of American is an open resource for the SHEA/IDSA Compendium of Strategies to prevent HAIs.
APIC – The Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology provides topic-specific infection prevention information Check out the Practice Resources under the professional practice tab, Infection Prevention & You, and their JeoPARODY! game.
Project Firstline (CDC) – This website has lots of resources, micro-learnings and educational materials for open use.
VDH HAI/AR – The Virginia Department of Health (VDH) Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAI) & Antimicrobial Resistance (AR) Program provides guidance, free resources, and education for infection prevention professionals.
OSHA – The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is a great resource to learn about federal laws and regulations that are in place to protect healthcare workers from bloodborne pathogens.
HICPAC – The Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee (HICPAC) provides advice and guidance on infection control to DHHS and CDC. Provided here is a direct link to CDC recommendations for transmission-based precautions by disease.
VIPTC – The Virginia Infection Prevention Training Center (VIPTC) offers free educational modules and training videos available for all areas of practice.
SPICE – North Carolina’s Statewide Program for Infection Control & Epidemiology (SPICE) has both free and paid resources all areas of infection prevention.

VIPTC’s Foundational Course in Infection Prevention and Control

The Foundational Course in Infection Prevention & Control is designed for healthcare professionals who require focused education on beginner-level infection prevention and control (IPC) concepts. The goal of the course is to provide specialized training on fundamental infection prevention subjects including vaccines, hand hygiene, microbes, personal protective equipment, waste management, and cleaning/disinfection.

Modules:

Visit viptc.vcu.edu to access our full library of on-demand courses, training videos, and infection prevention resources.

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