Capitalizing on the Challenge to Infection Control

Behind every landmark in infection prevention, from antimicrobial stewardship guidelines to the COVID-19 town halls that reached flight attendants and teachers, is a generation of physician-scientists who led SHEA through crises, organizational change, and scientific breakthroughs. Infection Control Today traces 30 years of SHEA presidents and the lasting mark they left on the field.

A shifting mask or fogged eyewear can interrupt focus when precision matters most. Dana Weaver Storm, MHA, BSN, RN, examines the challenges of prolonged surgical mask use and how perioperative leaders can support comfort, visibility, and consistent adherence.

Turnover pressure can leave critical OR cleaning steps unfinished. Karen deKay, MSN, RN, EBP-C, CNOR, CIC, FAPIC, examines common gaps in environmental hygiene and how shared responsibilities, attention to disinfectant contact time, and ongoing education can help teams strengthen practices between cases.

High contact follow-up rates suggest progress, but who is being missed? Inside the DRC’s Ebola response, shortages, strained treatment centers, and gaps in community trust reveal a more complicated story.

This week on Infection Control Today, the stories ranged from emerging drug-resistant pathogens circling the globe to a landmark decade of surface science—all against a backdrop of ongoing outbreaks and a hard look at what the profession owes its own workforce.

A study of 4,851 nursing home residents linked shared rooms to higher odds of matching MDRO carriage, while universal decolonization was associated with lower concordant carriage across MRSA, ESBL, and VRE.

Presented at IDWeek 2026, a living review of 64 studies found the strongest evidence for dengue prevention from mosquito modification, while highlighting substantial uncertainty and research gaps in other approaches to Aedes vector control.

A 2026 IDWeek poster details how respiratory cultures and whole genome sequencing clarified a NICU MRSA outbreak, with targeted prevention measures followed by at least 6 months without additional bacteremias or related respiratory clusters.