PHX

PHX Designs Statewide Infection Prevention and Control Trainings

Developed in partnership with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, the trainings will ensure healthcare workers stay up to date with the latest information and resources surrounding infection control in Massachusetts.

Population Health Exchange (PHX) in the Office of Lifelong Learning at the School of Public Health is partnering with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health (DPH) Healthcare-Associated Infections and Antibiotic Resistance Program to lead statewide efforts to provide healthcare workers, public health professionals, and students with infection prevention and control (IPC) training and resources. This partnership stems from DPH’s ongoing work with Project Firstline, a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention initiative that aims to provide IPC training for every frontline healthcare worker across the country.

As part of these efforts, PHX has helped develop free training materials to address current issues and concerns related to IPC for Massachusetts healthcare facilities and providers. They have also built a website for DPH that serves as an IPC resource hub for the state, housing Massachusetts-specific trainings, as well as Project Firstline materials, to build a foundational understanding of IPC in healthcare settings. A series of webinars, short videos, and print materials covering a variety of IPC-related topics are also available on the site.

“We hope that these trainings and other available resources are able to increase our healthcare workers’ knowledge and confidence when it comes to infection prevention and control,” says Katie Reilly, healthcare associated infections nurse advisor at DPH and the Project Firstline lead for Massachusetts. “Applying IPC knowledge and skills in their workplace will ensure that our frontline healthcare workers are providing the safest care for their patients, communities, and themselves.”

Continuing education credits are available for those healthcare workers who complete the trainings, as well as for those who attend the webinars. The next webinar, which expands beyond traditional IPC content, Antibiotic Stewardship in Long-Term Care: Leveraging your Facility’s Antibiotic Start Data and New Tools and Resources, will take place on Tuesday, May 17.

Throughout the development of the trainings and website, and as the information around infection prevention and control has evolved throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the PHX team has worked closely with Reilly and her team at DPH to update content and ensure it is current, accessible, and manageable. The website will continue to grow as new information and resources become available.

“Working with PHX has been a wonderful experience,” highlights Reilly. “They have worked diligently to build a beautiful and informative IPC resource hub, and their partnership has really helped DPH expand participation in both trainings and webinars.”

“We are honored to have been selected by DPH to help with this work,” says Leslie Tellalian, assistant dean for lifelong learning. “The DPH team brings a wealth of experience and knowledge of working across all facets of infection prevention and control in healthcare facilities, and together, we have been able to build on the strengths of both of our teams to advance this work and produce essential resources for healthcare workers across the state.”

Stay up to date with the infection prevention and control resources available in Massachusetts here.