Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) is an essential pillar in guaranteeing the safety of patients and carers. Progress has been made in different parts of the world, but practices remain disparate. IPC practices are also facing new challenges such as the emergence of new pathogens, antimicrobial resistance, inadequate WASH structures and a lack of trained human resources in certain contexts.
In order to improve practices, current trends, based on recent scientific evidence, are moving towards the adoption of innovative methods using scientific and technological advances.
Our aim is to provide an overview of best practices in IPC in 2025, adapted to current and future challenges in healthcare establishments.
There are many emerging technologies in IPC. These include the use of cleaning robots for autonomous disinfection of premises, and intelligent sensors for real-time monitoring of hand hygiene and water and air quality in establishments. In addition, there is the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to detect non-compliance in hand hygiene and to perform predictive data analysis to anticipate outbreaks and then the subsequent use of antimicrobial surfaces.
The role of automated surveillance of nosocomial infections and epidemics is vital, with the introduction of digital early warning systems offering unprecedented predictive accuracy and significantly reducing the response time to epidemics.
For the IPC training, it is appropriate to use innovative training formats (interactive e-learning, simulations, etc.)
In low ressources settings, there are also simple, relevant and cost-effective ways to improve practices