Infection prevention and control in aged care
The Commission has developed a series of resources on infection prevention and control (IPC) for aged care service providers and staff.
New Guidance resource
To support implementation of antimicrobial stewardship in aged care organisations, the Commission has released Guidance for implementation of the Antimicrobial Stewardship (AMS) Clinical Care Standard in aged care. Find out more about the Antimicrobial Stewardship Clinical Care Standard and implementation support resources.
The Aged Care IPC Guide
To support implementation of the strengthened Aged Care Quality Standards, the Commission has released The Aged Care Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) Guide. This Guide supplements the Australian Guidelines for the Prevention and Control of Infection in Healthcare and aims to support the aged care workforce and those providing care for older people to understand basic IPC principles and to apply these principles using a risk-based approach.
Overview
In aged care settings, infection prevention and control (IPC) and antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) programs protect older people and staff by reducing the risk of transmission of infections and the development of antimicrobial resistance.
The following resources are available to assist aged care service providers to implement IPC and AMS strategies to protect older people and staff from infections.
Hand hygiene in aged care
Observational hand hygiene auditing uses trained auditors to observe hand hygiene practices in real time based on the World Health Organization’s 5 Moments. While this method is common in acute healthcare settings, it is not recommended for residential and community aged care settings, as they are older people’s homes.
Aged care services are encouraged to use alternative methods to assess hand hygiene compliance, such as product availability audits, staff or client surveys or competency assessments. These methods support a practical, respectful, and sustainable approach to hand hygiene improvement in aged care settings.
For more information regarding hand hygiene in aged care settings, please refer to the Aged Care Infection Prevention and Control Guide.
Aged care IPC eLearning
Aged care organisations and their employees can access the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission’s Aged Care Learning Information Solution (Alis) platform for learning modules specific to the aged care sector, including infection prevention and control and hand hygiene.
For information regarding the Alis system, please visit the ACQSC website or email education@agedcarequality.gov.au.
For further information or to request an exemption for an aged care organisation to register in the NHHI LMS, please contact the NHHI Helpdesk
Commission resources
IPC Guidelines
Posters
IPC Factsheets
AMS Factsheets
IPC Guidelines
Posters
IPC Factsheets
AMS Factsheets
External links
- Quality Standards | Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission
- Aged care | Department of Health and Aged Care – including information about COVID-19 and aged care