Missing reservoirs in the healthcare setting
Tracks
Meeting Room 1.61 - 1.62
| Tuesday, July 1, 2025 |
| 10:31 AM - 11:00 AM |
Overview
Speaker: Dr Nectarios Papavarnavas
Speaker
Dr Nectarios Papavarnavas
University of Cape Town
Missing reservoirs in the healthcare setting
Abstract
Hospital surfaces can act as silent reservoirs for pathogens, lingering for extended periods and often forming stubborn biofilms. These hidden threats can easily be overlooked, making it essential to know where to look—and how to act—to break the chain of transmission.
Biography
Dr Tari Papavarnavas completed his medical degree at the University of Pretoria and trained in General Internal Medicine and subsequently in Infectious Diseases at the University of Cape Town. He was appointed as an Infectious Diseases sub-specialist in the Division of Infectious Diseases and HIV Medicine at UCT in 2022. He is the head of the Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) service at Groote Schuur Hospital, and in partnership with IPC nurses, Occupational Health practitioners, and ward liaisons, he aims to build a comprehensive IPC program.
Tari is also the director of the Cape Town GeoSentinel Travel Surveillance Network Site, which surveys travellers from South Africa and those visiting from abroad who act as sentinels for emerging and re-emerging infections
