At a glance
- The Foundational Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) Course for Global Healthcare Settings was designed by CDC and ICAP at Columbia University to help healthcare workers in global healthcare settings strengthen their foundational IPC knowledge and skills.
- Course modules include facilitator guides, slide decks, and practical activities that can be adapted to local needs and contexts.
About this course
Intended audience
The course was designed for healthcare workers across all roles and experience levels.
Purpose
Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs), antimicrobial resistance (AR), and emerging infectious diseases are urgent public health threats that can put patients, healthcare workers, and communities at risk. Preventing and responding to these threats requires a healthcare workforce skilled in IPC.
The Foundational IPC Course for Global Healthcare Settings introduces the fundamental principles and practices of IPC that apply to all healthcare workers across all levels of healthcare delivery. Learners will explore topics such as microbiology basics, Standard and Transmission-based Precautions, and prevention of healthcare worker infections. These foundational concepts also prepare learners for more advanced IPC training in surveillance, data use, and other IPC practices.
Course development
This course was developed by subject matter experts from CDC and ICAP at Columbia University. It aligns with the World Health Organization (WHO) core competencies for IPC and pre-service and in-service IPC training curricula for healthcare professionals.
The course incorporates adult learning principles through interactive exercises and practical, workplace-based learning activities to help participants deepen their understanding of the topics and connect new knowledge to their own role and experience.
How to use these materials
The Foundational IPC Course is designed for in-person delivery and includes training modules, facilitator guides, and practical activities that can be adapted to local needs and contexts.
While modules can be selected to meet specific training needs or time constraints, facilitators are encouraged to use the full course to ensure learners gain the complete set of foundational IPC competencies.
Based on course piloting, we suggest planning an initial week for in-person training, a four-to-six-week period for implementation of on-the-job activities, followed by a week for final training and closing.
What's included
Available modules
Modules coming soon
- Microbiology and Chain of Transmission
- Introduction to Standard Precautions
- Hand Hygiene
- Environmental Cleaning
- Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) Use
- Waste Management
- Injection Safety
- Introduction to HAIs
- Occupational Health
- WHO Core Components
- Transmission-based Precautions
- HAI Outbreaks
This page was last updated on this date. Updates may include minor edits, image changes, or other modifications to page content.
The information on this page was last reviewed by subject matter experts to ensure accuracy.