Infection Prevention & Control (IPC) Annual Statement 2024-25
This annual statement will be generated each year in accordance with the requirements of The Health and Social Care Act 2008 Code of Practice on the prevention and control of infections and related guidance. It summarises:
- Any infection transmission incidents and any action taken (these will have been reported in accordance with our Significant Event procedure)
- Details of any infection control audits undertaken, and actions undertaken
- Details of any risk assessments undertaken for prevention and control of infection
- Details of staff training
- Any review and update of policies, procedures, and guidelines.
Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) Team
IPC Lead – Shynamma Roy (Practice Nurse)
The IPC Lead is supported by: Vanessa Jones, Nargis Akthar and Ghazala Jarwar.
The Lead Nurse attends IPC Lead training courses and keeps the practice updated on infection prevention guidelines.
Infection transmission incidents (Significant Events)
Significant events (which may involve examples of good practice as well as challenging events) are investigated in detail to see what can be learnt and to indicate changes that might lead to future improvements. All significant events are reviewed in the staff meetings and learning is cascaded to all relevant staff.
In the past year there have been no significant events raised that related to infection control.
There have also been no complaints made regarding infection control.
Infection Prevention Audit and Actions
A third party IPC audit was carried out by William Pillow from Infection Prevention Solutions, following which the practice received an overall score of 93%.
As a result of the audit, the following changes have been proposed;
- All extraneous items are to be removed from near the wash basin and their surroundings are clean wipeable to the correct safety standards.
- Environmental Cleaning Schedule should be available to provide information on the type and frequency of cleaning.
- Damaged examination /treatment couches should be replaced or repaired with a wipeable cover.
- Aprons should be stored in a suitable container in the cupboard or in a wall mounted dispenser.
- Curtains or blinds should replace as required.
- All the fabric chairs in the clinical rooms for the patients and clinicians are to be removed and be replaced with wipeable chairs.
An audit on hand washing is carried out every 3 months and was last undertaken in January 2025.
Other audits carried out at the practice include;
• 3 monthly internal Infection Prevention and Control audit
• Cleaning audit
• New Cleaning Standards – 3 Monthly Room Audits
• Waste audit
• Sharps bin audit
• Cleaning Spot Checks
Risk Assessments
Risk assessments are carried out annually. Risk assessments that were last carried out include the following;
Legionella (Water) Risk Assessment: The practice has conducted/reviewed its water safety risk assessment to ensure that the water supply does not pose a risk to patients, visitors, or staff.
Immunisation: As a practice we ensure that all our staff are up to date with their Hepatitis B immunisations and we offer any occupational health vaccinations applicable to their role (i.e., MMR, Seasonal Flu and Hepatitis B). We take part in the National Immunisation campaigns for patients and offer vaccinations in house and via home visits to our patient population.
Curtains: The NHS Cleaning Specifications state the curtains should be cleaned or if using disposable curtains, replaced every yearly. We ensure our disposable curtains are replaced yearly if not visibly soiled. We have reusable curtains which require regular washing and is laundered on a regular basis. The window blinds are very low risk and therefore do not require a particular cleaning regime other than regular vacuuming to prevent build-up of dust. The modesty curtains although handled by clinicians, are never handled by patients, and clinicians have been reminded to always remove gloves and clean hands after an examination and before touching the curtains. All curtains are regularly inspected and changed if visibly soiled.
Cleaning specifications, frequencies, and cleanliness: We also have a cleaning specification and frequency policy which our cleaners and staff are required to adhere to. An assessment of cleanliness is conducted and logged by the infection control team on a weekly basis. This includes all aspects in the surgery including cleanliness of equipment and rooms.
Training
• All our staff receive annual training in infection prevention and control
• All clinical and non -clinical staff have completed training.
Policies
All Infection Prevention and Control related policies are up to date for this year.
Policies relating to Infection Prevention and Control are available to all staff and are reviewed and updated annually and all are amended on an on-going basis as current advice, guidance, and legislation changes. Infection Control policies are circulated amongst staff for reading and discussed at meetings on an annual basis.
Responsibility
It is the responsibility of everyone to be familiar with this Statement and their roles and responsibilities under this.
Responsibility for Review
The Infection Prevention and Control Lead Shynamma Roy is responsible for reviewing and producing the Annual Statement on behalf of Abbey Road Medical Practice
