Infection Prevention and Control

About our Service

The Infection Prevention and Control Service works across the health and social care setting to reduce health care associated infections (HCAIs).

We provide support and advice to healthcare professionals and the public through the following:

Infection Control Audits
Monitoring and surveillance of outbreaks
Outbreak management of HCAIs (e.g. norovirus, C difficile, MRSA)
Specialist Infection Prevention and Control advice and support
Training in Infection Prevention & Control
Development of policies, guidelines and information leaflets
Procurement advice
Promote hand hygiene practice
Produce annual infection control report

Office hours

Monday – Friday, 9:00am – 5:00pm

Out of Hours

Urgent advice and support is available by calling 0151 706 2000.

Contact

Infection Prevention and Control Service

Old Market House
Hamilton Street
Birkenhead
CH41 5AL

Tel: 0151 604 7750
Fax: 0151 643 5445

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Clean Your Hands

SAVE LIVES: Clean Your Hands

Wirral Community NHS Trust has registered to participate in the World Health Organisation’s SAVE LIVES: Clean Your Hands campaign. By registering we are demonstrating a commitment to best practice in hand hygiene and supporting a global movement to take action and save lives.

The focus for this campaign is around improving hand hygiene at the point of care.

Hand hygiene is essential for preventing the spread of infection. The World Health Organisation (WHO) and National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) have devised ‘5 Moments for Hand Hygiene’ to highlight the crucial times when hand hygiene must be performed. These moments include: before patient contact, before an aseptic task, after body fluid exposure risk, after patient contact and after contact with patient surroundings.

The aim of this campaign is to:

Raise hand hygiene awareness
Improve hand hygiene compliance
Help fight Healthcare Acquired Infection (HAI)
Make patient safety our No 1 priority.

The current Essential Steps Hand Hygiene audit tool reflects the WHO/NPSA ‘5 Moments for hand hygiene’.

Why not test yourself on the 5 moments for hand hygiene by playing the ‘Wi-Five?’ game as it is fun and educational all in one go!

The campaign also aims to encourage patients to feel it's ok to ask healthcare workers about their hand hygiene, if they feel staff may have forgotten to clean their hands.

For our part in this initiative we have received a letter of commendation from the World Health Organisation.

If you would like to know more about the campaign at Wirral Community NHS Trust then please contact the Infection Prevention & Control Service on 0151 604 7750.