Prevention

Researchers used whole genome sequencing and traditional epidemiology to trace a cluster of Paraburkholderia fungorum bloodstream infections to contaminated nonsterile ultrasound gel, prompting national safety recommendations.

A quality improvement initiative at Ocean University Medical Center found that reinstating hands-on urinary catheter competency training was associated with a 46% reduction in CAUTIs and improved infection metrics.

A photo-based education activity helped frontline staff recognize infection prevention concerns, discuss common barriers, and strengthen survey readiness in long-term care.

Many people think of pertussis, or whooping cough, as a childhood disease, but experts warn that waning immunity means it can affect people of all ages. In this Q&A, Prof. Ulrich Heininger, MD, discusses why pertussis remains a global public health concern, the serious risks it poses to young infants, and why vaccination during every pregnancy and booster immunizations throughout life are critical to prevention.

The 2026 FIFA World Cup will present one of the most complex infectious disease challenges ever faced by infection preventionists and public health officials. Spanning 3 countries, 16 host cities, and millions of international travelers, the tournament creates opportunities for the spread of respiratory illnesses, foodborne diseases, sexually transmitted infections, vector-borne pathogens, and rare high-consequence diseases. While the matches will last only a few weeks, surveillance efforts will need to continue for months afterward as infections such as tuberculosis and other travel-associated diseases emerge.

Mental wellness remains a critical issue for health care workers. After using Brain-Body Therapy for nearly 2 weeks, I found its combination of guided movement, CBT-informed content, and stress-reduction techniques particularly relevant for infection prevention professionals navigating high-pressure environments. Read my review of this innovative app and why it may help support resilience, stress management, and overall well-being.

Test your infection prevention and control knowledge with this IPC-themed crossword puzzle featuring terms and concepts related to hand hygiene, sterilization, PPE, outbreak prevention, and healthcare-associated infections. Designed for health care professionals, the puzzle offers an engaging way to reinforce key IPC principles while promoting education and awareness.

The Bug of the Month helps educate readers about existing and emerging pathogens that are clinically important in today's health care facilities.

When it comes to CLABSIs, the problem is not a lack of knowledge. It is that prevention still depends too heavily on perfect execution inside imperfect systems.

Environmental surfaces remain a critical but often invisible component of infection prevention. In this Q&A, experts discuss how real-time microbial visualization technology may help infection preventionists and environmental services teams identify contamination risks, validate cleaning efforts, and improve environmental surveillance beyond traditional methods.

How plastic‑free wipes are helping hospitals reduce waste while delivering disinfecting performance.

Over the past 30 years, as infection outbreaks, rapid service expansion, and increasingly complex medical devices transformed the landscape, sterile processing rose to the challenge by standardizing, modernizing, and innovating to keep patients safe.

A large real-world study involving more than 430,000 adults aged 65 years and older found comparable effectiveness between adjuvanted and high-dose influenza vaccines, reinforcing current ACIP recommendations and giving health care systems greater flexibility during vaccine procurement and influenza season planning. In this Q&A, Mendel Haag, PhD, senior director of the Center of Outcomes Research & Epidemiology in global medical affairs at CSL Seqirus, discusses vaccine confidence, influenza misinformation, operational barriers to vaccination, and why ongoing real-world evidence remains critical for protecting vulnerable older adult populations.

A new study from leaders at ChristianaCare is shining a spotlight on the growing need for greater autonomy, stronger leadership development, and increased recognition for sterile processing departments within healthcare systems. Researchers found that 43% of SPD professionals reported pressure to bypass sterilization protocols due to operational demands, raising concerns about safety culture, staffing, and perioperative decision-making. In this interview, Kevin M. Bush Jr, EdD, DHSc, MSHA, MA, FACHE, CPHRM, CPHQ, CPPS, CIC, CHES; and Brandon Gantt, DHSc, MHA, LSSGBH, discuss their study and why SPD must be recognized as a clinical safety partner central to infection prevention, surgical safety, and patient outcomes.

Sterile processing departments (SPD) are increasingly being pushed beyond reactive maintenance models as equipment failures, workflow disruptions, and tray defects continue to impact surgical readiness and patient safety. This article explores why SPD may be uniquely positioned for an AI-driven predictive maintenance revolution, examining how systems thinking, IoT integration, human factors research, and real-time equipment monitoring could help reduce disruptions before failures occur. The piece also highlights the growing shift toward treating maintenance as a strategic reliability function tied directly to infection prevention, OR efficiency, and operational resilience across health care systems.

The MV Hondius hantavirus outbreak exposed a critical surveillance gap: by the time official alerts were issued, exposed passengers had already dispersed across multiple countries. This article explores how infection preventionists can use emerging open-source dashboards, real-time data aggregation tools, and internal informatics systems to bridge the dangerous lag between exposure events and actionable public health intelligence. From cruise ship outbreaks to facility-level exposures, the piece examines how digital surveillance may help IPs shift from reactive outbreak reconstruction to faster, proactive containment strategies.

The 2026 Bundibugyo Ebola outbreak is rapidly escalating across the DRC and Uganda, exposing how fragile global outbreak preparedness becomes when surveillance systems, community engagement programs, and frontline public health infrastructure are allowed to erode. This article examines how delayed detection, funding cuts, weakened infection prevention capacity, and growing community resistance are complicating containment efforts for a strain with no approved vaccine or targeted treatment. The outbreak is becoming a stark reminder that global health security depends on sustained investment long before the next emergency begins.

A 7-year study at a 1,900-bed academic medical center in Singapore found no epidemiological link between contaminated endoscopes and postprocedural bloodstream infections, despite routine microbiological surveillance detecting residual contamination.

The global infection control supplies market is projected to grow from $58.5 billion in 2026 to $106.1 billion by 2035 as healthcare systems invest more heavily in infection prevention, sterilization technologies, PPE, and automated disinfection solutions. Driven by rising healthcare-associated infections, aging populations, chronic disease burden, and increasing regulatory pressure, the market is evolving toward smarter, technology-enabled infection prevention strategies across hospitals, ambulatory surgical centers, and outpatient care settings.

Test your infection prevention and control knowledge with this IPC-themed crossword puzzle featuring terms and concepts related to hand hygiene, sterilization, PPE, outbreak prevention, and health care-associated infections. Designed for health care professionals, the puzzle offers an engaging way to reinforce key IPC principles while promoting education and awareness.

The 2026 Ebola outbreak is forcing infection prevention teams to confront a difficult question: Are hospitals truly prepared for a high-consequence infectious disease event today? With the rare Bundibugyo strain spreading across Central Africa and no licensed vaccine or approved treatment available, experts say now is the time for facilities to reopen, review, and test the HCID response plans many have not touched since 2015.

The 2026 Ebola outbreak has now spread to the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda, with the WHO reporting more than 513 cases and over 130 suspected deaths linked to the Bundibugyo strain, which currently has no approved vaccine or treatment. This article examines the outbreak through both a global health and infection prevention lens, highlighting concerns over weakened public health infrastructure, CDC staffing cuts, reduced USAID funding, and lessons still unlearned from prior Ebola and COVID-19 responses. Experts warn that while widespread US transmission remains unlikely, early investment in global outbreak response is critical to preventing future public health emergencies.

Candida auris continues to challenge infection prevention programs worldwide as cases rise across health care settings and multidrug resistance limits treatment options. In this article, Ayaz Majid, PhD, director of product management at Diasorin, explores why rapid molecular diagnostics are becoming essential tools for identifying colonized patients, supporting isolation protocols, and helping health care facilities prevent outbreaks before they spread.

The article examines a recent hantavirus outbreak linked to a cruise ship on the Atlantic Ocean and explains why experts say it is unlikely to become another COVID-19-style pandemic. It reviews how hantaviruses spread, the severe clinical syndromes they can cause, current prevention and infection control measures, and the urgent need for better diagnostics, treatments, vaccines, and surveillance as concerns grow over rare person-to-person transmission involving the Andes virus.

Sterile processing departments are often called the invisible backbone of surgical care, but a recent investigation involving Penn State Health and Milton S. Hershey Medical Center highlights what can happen when those systems come under pressure. Reports of contaminated instrument trays, sterilization backlogs, staffing strain, and communication breakdowns are raising broader questions about patient safety, infection prevention infrastructure, and operational priorities across health care. ***Updated with an answer from Penn State Health.