We are a group of professionals who work in the field of infectious disease and infection prevention and control. In this podcast series, we discuss new research and issues on the topic of infection prevention and control.
We will pick new papers of interest and will discuss them, often with an author of the paper who can give us some insights into the research that go beyond the written paper. We are unfunded and do not accept solicitations from companies or marketeers.
Authors will include nurses, doctors, academics, clinicians, administrators and leaders.
We should stress that all of our comments relate to our own opinions and that they do not necessarily reflect those institutions and employers that we relate to.
We welcome comment, suggestions and ideas. Please consider subscribing for updates and to find collections of topic specific podcasts at www.infectioncontrolmatters.com
Cleaning is Patient Safety: Empowering the People Who Keep Hospitals Safe
In this episode, Martin Kiernan talks with Dr Alexandra Peters, President of Clean Hospitals, ahead of the annual Clean Hospitals Day on 20 October.
They discuss this year’s theme of empowerment—why environmental services staff should be recognised as frontline healthcare workers, and why training, professionalisation and giving them a voice matter for patient safety. Alexandra describes how training, certification and career progression are used to professionalise environmental services in Switzerland, and why giving staff knowledge isn't enough if they aren't also given a voice. The conversation asks a fundamental question: should an environmental services worker have the authority to say that a room isn't yet safe for the next patient—even when operational pressures say otherwise?
Alexandra also explains how you can get involved in Clean Hospitals Day 2026, with free campaign resources available in 22 languages.
Clean Hospitals Website: www.cleanhospitals.com
Direct link to the promotional materials here: https://cleanhospitals.com/promotional-toolkit-2026/
Peters A, Mocenic M, Brois P, Rioja E, Mitchell BG, Dancer SJ, et al. Clean hospitals day 2026: empowerment of environmental services staff. Journal of Hospital Infection 2026;176:201–3. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhin.2026.09.015.
Direct link to the paper: https://www.journalofhospitalinfection.com/article/S0195-6701(26)00373-7/pdf
24 Sept 2026
Evidence or Efficiency? How We Make IPC Decisions
In this episode, Phil Russo and Brett Mitchell are joined by Dr Shalini Elangovan from Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore to discuss her global study exploring how IPC professionals make decisions.
Using a discrete choice experiment, Shalini and colleagues examined the trade-offs people make between clinical evidence, cost-effectiveness, implementation time and the additional workload an intervention creates.
What actually makes an IPC professional say “yes” to an intervention? The study found that cost-effectiveness was the most important attribute overall, but also identified striking differences between “evidence seekers” and “efficiency seekers,” particularly between respondents from lower/middle- and high-income countries. This suggests that the setting in which you work may influence what you value when deciding whether an IPC intervention is worth implementing.
Link to the paper is here:Elangovan S, Senanayake S, Venkatachalam I, Ling ML, Graves N, Kularatna S. Preferences for Infection Prevention in Hospital-Acquired Infections. JAMA Netw Open 2026;9(4):e267432. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2026.7432.
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2847770
9 Sept 2026
RCTs in Infection Prevention and Control - Are we getting the evidence that we need?
In this episode of Infection Control Matters, Martin Kiernan talks to Brett Mitchell about a new review of RCTs in IPC over the past two decades. The review identified 239 trials, with a striking increase in recent years—but the research is concentrated in a relatively small number of areas. We also explore a much bigger issue: what happens to new evidence once it has been published? If guidelines remain unchanged while new RCTs accumulate, are we really translating research into practice?
We discuss what is driving this growth, where the important evidence gaps remain, and whether IPC guidelines are keeping pace with the emerging evidence. Could living guidelines be part of the answer?
Paper we discuss:Mitchell BG, Matterson G, Carroll MR, Donnelly H, Marimuthu K, Tehan PE. Global randomised controlled trials in infection prevention and control: a bibliographic review from the past two decades. J Hosp Infect 2026. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhin.2026.03.037.
Direct download link: https://www.journalofhospitalinfection.com/action/showPdf?pii=S0195-6701%2826%2900129-5
Another paper that we mention on the effect of delays in implementation:Reagan KA, Chan DM, Vanhoozer G, Pryor RJ, Doll ME, Godbout EJ, et al. Resistors and constipators: Financial impact in an academic medical center, a mathematical model. Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2022;43(4):533–5. https://doi.org/10.1017/ice.2021.34.
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1,947
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5.0 / 5
3 ratings
Spotify
4.9 / 5
17 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 38 / 100
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29
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YouTube
68
Engagement
51
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