The role of the

DIPC and the ICT

Charlie Charlton
Infection Control Nurse
 What is a DIPC
The DIPC is the

Director of
Infection
Prevention and
Control
In Mersey Care NHS Trust the DIPC is
The Executive Director of Nursing and Care
Karen Wilson
 What does the DIPC do
The main duties of a DIPC are to:

Have corporate responsibility for infection,

prevention and control throughout the Trust as
delegated by the Chief Executive, and to report
directly to the Chief Executive and assure the
Trust Board on the organisations performance in
relation to HCAIs providing, regular reports,
including an Annual Report
 Responsibilities
The DIPC is responsible for the
development of strategies on infection,
prevention and control and oversees
implementation. They will act on legislation
and national guidance and ensure that
effective policies are in place and audited.
This provides assurance to the Trust
Board that its policies are fit for purpose.
 Reports to Trust Board

The DIPC attends Board meetings to

report on infection, prevention and control
issues and ensures infection, prevention
and control consideration in other
operational and development decisions of
the Board.
 Leadership

The DIPC provides leadership to the

infection, prevention and control
programme in order to ensure a high
profile for infection control across the
organisation.
 Decontamination Lead

The DIPC ensures that decontamination

guidance is in place and adhered to
thorough the implementation of policies
and that public and patient involvement is
in infection, prevention and control is
facilitated.
 Inclusion

The DIPC is responsible for ensuring that

infection, prevention and control is
included in all job descriptions and job
plans and is a mandatory component of
CPD and is included in the appraisal of
clinical staff.
Education, Training and Research

The DIPC is influential in the development

and provision of education and training in
relation to infection, prevention and control
and oversees the audit of its uptake by
staff. The DIPC also encourages and
oversees participation in relevant research
opportunities.
 Governance

The DIPC is a member of the Clinical

Governance Committee and ensures
effective surveillance systems are in place
with timely feedback to clinical services.
Structure of the ICT

DIPC

ICNM ICD

ICNs x4

ICLNS
x 100
 What does the ICT do?

The ICT provides a high quality Infection

Control Service across the trust.
Members of the Team regularly update
their expert knowledge of Infection Control
by attendance on courses, seminars,
conferences that will benefit the Trust.
Lab Reports and Alert Organisms

The ICT regularly receive reports including

alert organisms from hospital laboratories
and respond as appropriate. Support is
provided for clinical staff.
 24hr on call
An Infection Control Nurse is available on
call 24 hours a day, 365 days a year to
give expert advice to all levels of the trust,
on Infection Control matters.

Out of hours advice is provided via

Ashworth Switchboard
 User-Carer Awareness

The ICT make users and carers aware of

the Infection Control Team structure, and
how to contact and participate in good
Infection Control practices.
 Recognising best practice and
feeding back on areas for
improvement
The ICT present certificates of achievement
awards to the clinical areas that score 100% on
audit. And also provide Certificates of
Professional Development/
Commendations/Merit Awards to ICLNs who
meet/surpass Infection Control requirements.
The team also provide feedback following audit
for clinical areas to meet best practice.
 Infection Control Committee

The ICT attend the Infection Control

Committee four times per year to inform
the Trust Board of progress, ensure that
national guidance is acted upon in a timely
manner, and review the Committee Terms
of Reference annually.
 Website

The ICT have developed specialist pages

within the Mersey Care Trust website.
These pages contain resources and
reference materials related to Infection
Control and are regularly updated and
maintained by an ICN.
 Audit

The ICT carry out audit review to provide a

cost effective trust wide service that
ensures the safety of staff, patients and
carers that measures compliance against
agreed standards based on national
guidance and best practice.
 Products and Purchasing
The ICT advise the trust on purchasing
equipment and services.
This includes things such as medical
devices, decontamination, furniture and
cleaning materials they provide assistance
regarding contracting for healthcare waste
and recommendation of Supply Chain
products.
 Link Nurses
The ICT recruit Infection Control Link Nurses for
every clinical area throughout the trust.
Link Nurses are trained four times a year and
sessions are provided which address trust and
national requirements and improve the clinical
areas through cascade training.
They provide Hand Hygiene kits for all Infection
Control Link Nurses to train clinical staff to meet
the requirements of the NHS Litigation Authority
Standards.
 Training
The ICT provide training sessions as a part of the Trust
Induction and Mandatory programmes to meet NHS
Litigation Authority standards and the Health Act 2006.

Additional Infection Control training is provided for other

trust staff such as Domestic Services, Drivers, Porters
and Sub Contractors etc. The ICT also assists with
development of and supports distance learning training
with links to Infection Control.
These course give accreditation to Infection Control Link
Nurses and other healthcare workers.
Working with the directorates

The ICT contribute to capital planning and

improve communications with all
directorates and departments throughout
the trust to ensure Infection Prevention
and Control issues are addressed in areas
such as planning refurbishments and new
builds, Risk, Governance and Health and
Safety.
 Inter Agency Working
The ICT works alongside Primary Care Trusts
and the HPA and regularly attends meetings.
The team also liaise with infection control teams
from neighbouring acute trusts regarding clients
who are transferring between the trusts and to
keep each other informed of outbreaks of
infection
 Surveillance
The ICT monitors Clostridium difficile and
MRSA figures, and carries out surveillance
to monitor the use of antibiotics across the
trust. It also surveys infections such as
HBV and HCV to monitor trends, incidence
and prevalence and reports to the Trust
Board and to the HPA. This is normally
presented in the form of Key Trust
Indicators.
 Vaccination
The ICT Promote the uptake of Influenza
vaccination in patients who fall into the
target groups, by providing promotional
materials and support to Infection Control
Link Nurses.
 Service Plan and Policy
The ICT provide a Service Plan and an
Annual Report to the Trust Board to report
on compliance against national guidelines
and legislation. The ICT also provide an
Infection Prevention and Control Policy
which is regularly reviewed as legislation
changes. This is ratified through the Trust
Board.
 Safety Alerts

The ICT receive and respond to

(Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory
Authority) MHRA notifications, producing
and disseminating Quality Practice Alerts
throughout the trust as appropriate.
 Confidentiality and Security

The Infection Control Team adhere to

Caldicott guidelines and Tilt
recommendations to ensure that
confidentiality and security procedures are
always adhered to.