[John-paul]

Reflection question: This reading discusses low compliance with IPAC practices by health care providers. Have you always followed IPAC practices in your workplace? What would you recommend at your current or a former workplace to ensure or increase compliance with IPAC practices?

[Ochuko Bridget]

In my experience, I have generally followed IPAC practices in my workplace, but like many busy clinical settings, there have been moments where compliance can slip, especially when you have a high workload or during emergencies. Hand hygiene before every single patient contact or consistent PPE use can sometimes be unintentionally rushed when the unit is short-staffed and you are under pressure with caring for multiple patients. Although I recognize that even small lapses can increase the risk of transmission of infection, especially with organisms like MRSA and C. Diff.
To improve compliance, I would recommend a focus on real-time reminders and accountability. For example, placing hand hygiene prompts at every bedside, increasing visible auditing with supportive feedback rather than punishment, and ensuring PPE and hand sanitizers are always easily accessible at the point of care. Regular short refresher courses, in-service education sessions, and sharing unit-specific infection rates and hand sanitizing audit reports can also help staff see the impact of their actions. Leadership role-modelling is also important, as staff are more likely to follow IPAC practices when they consistently see senior staff doing the same.

[Maame]

Hello Bridget,

I agree with the audits aspect because currently at my work place they are doing auditing on every shift but not as frequent but it helps to know what staff can improve on. Supportive feedback is also great instead of punishment; when the RN came to the floor and completed the audit he explained what I did well and what I can improve on. The feedback was beneficial for me because I got to know what I did well in and what I was lacking.

[Maame]

I work in long term care and for the most part I do comply with IPAC practices at work. With working as a nurse in a fast pace environment it could be challenging and easy to take short cuts for example not properly donning and doffing of PPEs; not properly completing hand hygiene after each task. Currently at my workplace we do have mandatory education on the importance IPAC standards, and also RNs conducting random auditing during each shift also quizzing the staff. I would recommend that the auditing be done frequently to ensure all staff are in compliance with the standards.

[Damilola]

Hi Maame, I agree that regular education, random audits and staff reminders are important in promoting accountability among health care. Overall, maintaining strong IPAC practices is essential in protecting residents and healthcare workers. Continuous education and frequent auditing can help improve compliance and reduce the risk of infection transmission in long-term settings.

[Melissa]

I currently work in a long-term care facility that was built during the COVID-19 pandemic. In which the facility has multiple hand sanitizer stations on every floor, making it nearly impossible for me to forget to perform hand hygiene. Likewise, if a resident is on isolation precautions, I make sure to wear the appropriate PPE to protect myself, residents, and other staff members that I come into contact with. Conversely, for example, there have been times when I have needed to get to a resident quickly and have missed performing hand hygiene to put the resident’s safety first. However, after resident contact, I then performed hand hygiene.

I would recommend that there be more audits conducted regularly to increase staff compliance with IPAC protocols at my workplace. I would also like to see more visual representations (posters) of infection prevention so that there is a constant reminder for staff and visitors in the resident home areas in order to keep the environment and the people in it safe.

[Damilola]

I work as an RPN in long-term care. I understand the importance of infection prevention and control (IPAC) practices to protect myself, residents, staff and visitors from the spread of infections. I comply with IPAC practices, including proper hand hygiene and the use of appropriate PPE. However, being the only nurse with 32 residents, there are busy times when compliance may be challenging due to work. To improve compliance with IPAC measures in the workplace, I would recommend intermittent huddles and monthly education for all healthcare workers to facilitate staff to follow proper procedures consistently. In conclusion, creating a workplace culture where staff remind each other about IPAC practices without fear of criticism can help improve accountability and safety for all.

[Melissa]

Hi Damilola,

I also work on a busy long-term care floor, and I find it can be very challenging to consistently meet hand hygiene compliance. However, we need to stay committed to keeping our residents safe by practicing adequate hand hygiene whenever possible. I like your idea about having team huddles or monthly education to help remind staff members about the importance of maintaining consistency in adhering to infection control practices. Thanks for sharing ~Melissa

[Basirat]

Hi Damilola, I completely agree with you working in long term care can be incredibly busy and challenging, and it’s true that IPAC practices can sometimes slip when the workload gets heavy. But those are actually the moments when following IPAC matters the most, because our residents are so vulnerable.
In my workplace, I try to support compliance by reminding staff about hand hygiene throughout the day and keeping it positive rather than corrective. I also started a weekly Hand Hygiene Champion activity for residents and staff, which keeps everyone engaged and makes IPAC feel like a shared responsibility instead of an extra task.

[Amanda]

I follow IPAC practices and precautions in my practice. At one agency which I completed placement, they had some sort of connection/sensor between the employee badges and the room’s hand sanitizer dispensors. It was a method to monitor compliance of hand hygiene of staff performing proper hand hygiene prior to entering the patient room and when exiting. I do like the idea of this approach as it’s another way to maintain accountability.

In the fast paced enviornments that we work in, particularly with staff shortages and increased patient load I can understand how it can be challenging to be consistent. I believe that routine education and potentially implementing something like the badge sensor is another way to help with compliance.

[Catherine]

Hello Everyone – wonderful engagement so far in the course. I am really enjoying reading your perspectives and look forward to checking in. Amanda, I was really intrigued to read your post about the sensor on the employee badge and the hand sanitizers. I have not heard of this being utilized before but what a neat way for companies to track hand hygiene compliance. Since many of you, Maame and Melissa included, indicated you would like to see more regular auditing done on the floors I am curious what everyone thinks of this method as a way to track employee compliance? Do you feel this is beneficial? I feel this could be beneficial, so long as it is used as a means to educate and not be punitive and of course is used within a wider range of IPAC measures.

[Yi]

Hi Amanda,

Thank you for sharing your experience. I agree with your point that hand hygiene monitoring and routine education can help improve IPAC compliance. The badge sensor system you mentioned is very interesting because it may help remind staff to perform hand hygiene before and after resident care.

I also agree that working in a fast-paced environment with staffing shortages can make it challenging to follow every IPAC step consistently. In long-term care, nurses and staff often care for many residents with complex needs, so reminders, audits, and education are helpful. I think these strategies should be used in a supportive way, not as punishment, so staff feel encouraged to improve their practice.

Great post!

[Yi]

Subject: IPAC Compliance in Long-Term Care

In my long-term care practice, I try my best to follow IPAC practices consistently, including hand hygiene, proper use of PPE, cleaning shared equipment, and following isolation precautions. In long-term care, infection prevention and control is very important because many residents are older adults with chronic health conditions, weaker immune systems, and higher risk for complications from infections.

However, I understand that in a busy workplace, it can sometimes be challenging to follow every IPAC practice perfectly, especially during emergencies, short staffing, or when many residents need care at the same time. For example, staff may feel rushed and forget to perform hand hygiene at the correct moments, or may not always don and doff PPE properly. Even small missed steps can increase the risk of spreading infections such as respiratory illness, MRSA, C.difficile, or gastrointestinal outbreaks.

To improve IPAC compliance in long-term care, I would recommend regular education, short refresher training, visible reminders near sinks and hand sanitizer stations, and supportive auditing. Audits should not be used to blame staff, but to identify learning needs and improve practice. I also think it is important for nurses and leadership staff to role-model proper IPAC practices because staff are more likely to follow standards when they see others doing the same.

Overall, maintaining good IPAC practices helps protect residents, staff, families, and visitors. A positive workplace culture where staff can remind and support each other respectfully can help improve safety and reduce infection transmission.

[Yetunde]

In my experience, IPAC practices are followed most of the time, but not always consistently. For example, there was a situation where a staff member was going into a contact isolation room to drop off water for a patient and almost entered without wearing a gown because it seemed like a quick task. Another staff member reminded them that even for simple tasks like entering the room, a gown is still required to prevent contamination, so they put one on before going in. In busy moments or during high workload periods, it can be easy for some steps like hand hygiene or proper PPE use to be rushed or missed unintentionally. This shows that compliance can vary depending on time pressure, staffing, and reminders in the environment.

To improve compliance, I would recommend more frequent visual reminders placed directly in care areas, such as bedside posters and sanitizer station cues. Regular short refresher sessions during shifts could also help reinforce expectations without taking too much time. Another helpful strategy would be gentle peer reminders and creating a culture where staff feel comfortable reminding each other about IPAC practices without it feeling confrontational.

[Basirat]

In my experience working in a long term care home, I’ve learned that following IPAC practices consistently is not just a policy expectation but a daily responsibility that directly affects resident safety. I can’t say that every health care provider I’ve worked with has always followed IPAC perfectly especially during busy shifts or emergencies, but I make it a priority to model good practice myself. One of the ways I support compliance is by actively reminding staff about the importance of proper hand hygiene. I also took the initiative to start a weekly Hand Hygiene Champion activity for residents and staff, which helps keep the topic visible, engaging, and part of our routine culture.
To improve or maintain compliance with IPAC practices in my workplace, I would recommend regular visible reminders, ongoing education and refreshers, leadership modelling and accountability.

[Author]

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