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Directors of Infection Prevention and Control
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Last modified date:8 February 2007
Tackling healthcare associated infection cannot be left to clinical staff alone - it requires commitment from all levels of NHS organisations. Directors of Infection Prevention and Control report directly to the Trust Board and ensure that infection control is a key part of the organisation.
The role of the Director of Infection Prevention and Control
In December 2003 Winning Ways recommended that all organisations providing NHS services should have a Director of Infection Prevention and Control. The Director would:
- oversee local control of infection policies and their implementation;
- be responsible for the Infection Control Team within the healthcare organisation;
- report directly to the Chief Executive and the Board and not through any other officer;
- have the authority to challenge inappropriate clinical hygiene practice as well as antibiotic prescribing decisions;
- assess the impact of all existing and new policies and plans on infection and make recommendations for change;
- be an integral member of the organisation's clinical governance and patient safety teams and structures;
- produce an annual report on the state of healthcare associated infection in the organisation(s) for which he/she is reposnible and release it publicly.
Further detail on the competencies of Directors of Infection Prevention and Control was issued to NHS Trusts in May 2004.
Directors of Infection Prevention and Control Annual Reports
One of the responsibilities of the Director of Infection Prevention and Control is to produce an annual report on healthcare associated infection in their area. Suggestions as to what could be included in the report are provided here.
Additional links
Clean, Safe Care
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NHS Infection Control Programme
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