About the International Infection Control Branch (IICB)

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Infection Prevention and Control
What We Do
Where We Work

The International Infection Control Branch (IICB) works to protect patients and healthcare personnel globally, particularly in low- and middle-income countries. Working closely with partners and countries, we use our expertise, scientific evidence, and proven implementation strategies to support sustainable solutions to infectious disease threats in healthcare delivery, including:

Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs)
Antimicrobial resistance (AR)
Infectious disease outbreaks such as COVID-19, Ebola virus disease, and mpox

Read the July 2023 Clinical Infectious Diseases supplement featuring work by CDC and global partners to learn about the evolving global challenge of antimicrobial resistance and the need for a global effort to combat it.

Infection Prevention and Control

In our increasingly globalized world, infectious diseases can multiply and spread at alarming rates. Without proper infection prevention and control (IPC) programs and practices, healthcare settings may increase the spread of these germs, which can lead to outbreaks in the community and across international borders.

IPC is a patient safety and public health specialty that enables the safe delivery of healthcare through minimizing or eliminating the risk of infection. It is the cornerstone of a resilient healthcare system and protects healthcare workers, patients, and the surrounding community. IPC consists of programs, guidance and standards, education and training, supplies and equipment, monitoring and surveillance, investment, governance, research, and accountability.

In resource-limited settings, safe delivery of health services can be challenging due to inadequate IPC systems. Several factors may lead to higher rates of HAIs and AR in these settings, including:

A lack of trained IPC professionals and healthcare workers
Weak oversight and accountability systems to monitor safety
Overcrowding
Lack of essential water, sanitation, hygiene (WASH), environmental cleaning, and healthcare waste management
Limited investment in sustainable services

What We Do

We work with partners to drive global IPC priorities based on the latest data and support the development and implementation of national IPC and AR plans and policies so countries have a road map for coordinated efforts. We also collaborate with countries on the development of context-appropriate, facility-level IPC guidelines and tools that help facilities implement IPC programs that are relevant, achievable, and sustainable.

We work to connect HAI and AR surveillance and prevention programs into national, regional, and global networks. These networks can create powerful platforms for understanding the spread of infectious disease threats and for coordinating efforts to prevent and control them.

When outbreaks include healthcare settings, they can spread rapidly and affect patients, healthcare workers, visitors, and the community if not controlled. We help countries prepare for healthcare outbreaks before they happen. If an outbreak does happen, we provide support to countries to investigate the outbreak and stop it from spreading.

We conduct and support innovative studies and activities to enhance our understanding of HAI and AR threats, assist development of innovative solutions to combat these threats, and help track the progress and challenges of surveillance and prevention strategies. The knowledge resulting from these investigations helps to fill critical scientific gaps and inform evidence-based decision making in policy and practice.

We develop tools and support trainings and mentoring to help resource-limited settings build their laboratory and IPC capacity. Building lab capacity ensures that labs can produce the reliable, accurate data needed to detect and track HAIs and AR. Training and mentoring healthcare personnel at all levels enables them to support the development and implementation of IPC programs and prepares frontline healthcare workers to keep themselves and their patients safe.

Where We Work

The work of IICB would not be possible without our partners. Since 2014, IICB has worked with partners in the U.S. and around the world, including ministries of health, global public health organizations, academic institutions, other governmental organizations, and non-governmental organizations in over 44 countries to advance global healthcare safety.

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