In the mood to up your epi skills? This is the new ESCMID-SHEA course that was given for the first time in Australia last year (at least the first two tracks). It consists of a plenary part and 3 separate tracks. The first track is a practical exercise how to analyze a high rate of surgical site infections. Based on the results you have to draw conclusions and decide on an intervention. Finally you will determine if this has been effective.
The second track is a practical exercise how to analyze a possible outbreak with Clostridium difficile. Based on the results you will identify possible risk factors and routes of transmission. Finally you will take control measures and determine the effects.
The first two parts will require the use of a laptop with SPSS (for at least some of the participants) as participants will actually solve the problems. Don’t worry help is around, data-sets cleaned and the syntax is (just in case) written. It is actually a great way to get back into SPSS use.
The third track consists of four interactive master-classes. Faculty members will show some practical situations, which they have encountered during their careers. It will include outbreaks, high endemic rates of healthcare related infections, infections in the operating theatre and other topics.
Have a look at the folder: Training Course in Healthcare Epidemiology and Infection Control. While part of the faculty, Eli and I will probably not be around this year, as we transfer the old course (October 2016, Vietnam) to a new faculty of (even) younger colleagues.
Reflections on Infection Prevention and Control 
No matter how advanced the training, the end effectiveness is always limited to the effectiveness of the “tools” used to produce the desired / intended end result.
So whilst a supporter of better and more up-to-date training, such endeavours will only be as effective as the tools they have to work with.
If the tools are the same, then the impact of the improved training is more likely than not to be minimal.
There must be advances in other highly integrated areas that compliment the advances in training for there to be a meaningful impact and positive change in the end result.
From my perspective if there is a continuance of the usage of the same of cleaning and disinfection products and protocols, then don’t expect these developments in training of people to have a meaningful impact.
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