Infection Prevention and Control Essentials

1. Program overview

This is the foundation course for infection prevention, written for every role in a healthcare facility rather than for specialists. It covers the chain of infection, standard and transmission-based precautions, personal protective equipment selection and sequence, safe handling of sharps and linen, environmental cleaning, and the specific responsibilities that attach to clinical, support and administrative staff. WHO data shows only 19% of countries meet minimum IPC training requirements — the base rate of competence in this subject is genuinely poor, which makes it the safest and most necessary first course in any healthcare catalogue.

2. Why this program

• Written for every role, not only clinical staff.
• Aligned to WHO core component guidance.
• PPE taught as sequence and selection, not a poster.
• Practical, setting-neutral and internationally applicable.

3. Who it is for

Nurse · Physician · Pharmacist · Allied Health · Medical Secretary · Student · Healthcare Manager

4. Program objectives

• Describe the chain of infection and the points at which it can be broken
• Apply standard precautions consistently across clinical and non-clinical tasks
• Select and sequence personal protective equipment correctly
• Explain transmission-based precautions and when each applies
• Handle sharps, linen and waste safely
• Identify your own role's specific IPC responsibilities

5. Learning outcomes

• Identify the point in the chain of infection targeted by a given precaution
• Select appropriate PPE for a described clinical task
• Sequence donning and doffing correctly for contact, droplet and airborne precautions
• Classify a clinical scenario by required transmission-based precaution
• Apply safe sharps handling to a described procedure
• Differentiate cleaning, disinfection and sterilisation by application

6. Curriculum

1. Module 1: The Chain of Infection

   • The Chain of Infection

2. Module 2: Standard Precautions

   • Standard Precautions

3. Module 3: PPE: Selection and Sequence

   • PPE: Selection and Sequence

4. Module 4: Transmission-Based Precautions

   • Transmission-Based Precautions

5. Module 5: Sharps, Linen, Waste and Spills

   • Sharps, Linen, Waste and Spills

6. Module 6: Environmental Hygiene

   • Environmental Hygiene

7. Duration and structure

Total study hours: 3 — 2.5h content + 0.5h assessment. Duration is expressed in study hours only.

9. What you receive

This certificate confirms completion of Infection Prevention and Control Essentials. Duration is expressed in study hours.

10. Delivery format

Self-paced · start any time · any device · lifetime access to the enrolled version.