Education, Training, and Competencies
30/30 Education Session - 30 minutes
Tanushree Soni, PhD, MPH
Infection Prevention Coordinator
Emory Healthcare
Atlanta, Georgia
Nothing to disclose
Although often preventable, HAIs account for nearly 650,000 infections and cost billions of dollars annually. The high burden of HAIs associated with increased mortality and morbidity has resulted in IPC programs as a standard in healthcare systems.
The goal of an IPC program is to identify and control risks that may be responsible in the spread of HAIs, and one of the most critical is the detection of clinically relevant, transmissible infections.
Clinical microbiology laboratories are the first line of defense for accurate identification and susceptibility testing of infectious organisms responsible for various HAIs. Understanding the key concepts of clinical microbiology is critical for the core competency of an IP, and can help increase their proficiency in surveillance, antibiotic stewardship, outbreak detection, and the management and institution of prevention measures. In addition to strengthened competencies, these learnings can help the IP prepare for the CIC® exam.