A10: Infection prevention and control in health

• Techniques for infection control

  • Use of personal protective equipment (PPE) (for example aprons and gloves)
  • Use of cleaning and disinfecting agents (for example appropriate dilutions)
  • Effective handwashing techniques (for example the NHS 5 moments of hand hygiene)
  • Good personal hygiene and uniform requirements (for example hair tied up and clean uniform)
  • Safe disposure of sharps (for example hypodermic needles and disposable scalpels)
  • Appropriate waste segregation and disposal (for example classification)
• Importance of infection control techniques

  • Prevent harm caused to both individuals and healthcare workers
• Importance of good handwashing techniques and personal hygiene

  • Help prevent the control of disease, infection and as a result illness
  • Reduces the risk of disease, infection and illness being passed from person to person through cross contamination
• Legal requirements

  • Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002
  • Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974
  • Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 2013
• How to practise good handwashing techniques

  1. Follow workplace guidance

  2. Ayliffe handwashing technique (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE))

  3. 5 moments (WHO)

  4. 12-point technique (WHO/NHS)
• How to practise good personal hygiene

  1. Washing body and hair regularly

  2. Wearing clean uniform

  3. Cleaning teeth

  4. Covering mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing

  5. Maintaining short, neat and clean nails
• Cleaning

  Physically reduces the presence of microorganisms that may be present on surfaces and instruments through the removal of visible foreign material, this minimises the risk of transfer of microorganisms
• Disinfecting

  Using a specific chemical disinfectant or by physical disinfection (for example heat) reduces nonvisible pathogenic microorganisms by destroying cell wall or interfering with metabolism
• Sterilisation

  The complete elimination of all microorganisms
• Decontamination

  Overarching process used to describe cleaning, disinfecting and sterilisation
• Cleaning


  Procedures that result in a surface being visibly clean
• Cleaning procedures

  1. Cleaning tools (for example mops)

  2. Vacuum cleaners

  3. Cloths and floor scrubbers

  4. Use of cleaning agents (some of these may eliminate microorganism)
• Disinfecting

  Involves the use of an agent known to destroy pathogenic microorganisms
• Disinfecting procedures

  Use of disinfectant agent (for example sodium hypochlorite)
• Sterilisation

  • Application of chemical
  • Application of high pressure
  • Application of heat
  • Application of irradiation and filtration or a combination of the two
• Differences in procedures for cleaning, disinfecting, and sterilisation

  • Cleaning
  • Disinfecting
  • Sterilisation
• Antimicrobial resistance

  Ability of a microorganism to survive exposure to antimicrobial agents (for example antibiotics)
• Impact of antimicrobial resistance

  • Overuse of antibiotics has reduced the overall effectiveness
  • Overuse has led to the emergence of new strains of microorganisms
  • Increase in super bugs (for example MRSA and Clostridium difficile)
• Reducing antimicrobial resistance

  Antimicrobial stewardship coordinated program in the healthcare sector to promote appropriate use of antimicrobials (for example antibiotics)