Infection control and prevention needs may vary across different healthcare settings, procedures, and patients. Healthcare workers may need to take standard, transmission-based, or enhanced barrier precautions depending on the situation. These precautions may have different applications in acute care settings compared to long-term care settings.
Infection Control Precautions & Resources by Setting
Information & Guidelines
By Precaution Type
- CDC Isolation Precautions Guidelines
- CDC Standard Precautions for All Patient Care
- CDC Transmission-Based Precautions
By Healthcare Setting
- CDC New and Existing Precautions to Prevent Multidrug-Resistant Organism Spread in Nursing Homes - includes information on enhanced barrier precautions
- CDC Guide to Infection Prevention in Outpatient Settings
- CDC Standard Precautions in Dental Settings Guidelines
Training & Education Materials
By Precaution Type
By Healthcare Setting
Virginia Resources
By Precaution Type
- Standard Precautions- Standard precautions are basic infection prevention practices to be used for the care of all patients at all times. These standard practices protect healthcare personnel from infection and prevent the spread of infection from patient to patient.
- Transmission-Based Precautions - Transmission-Based Precautions, used in addition to Standard Precautions, are additional infection prevention measures to prevent infection transmission with the care of patients who may be infected or colonized with certain infectious agents. There are three types of transmission-based precautions that have infection prevention measures based on the infections agent is spread: contact precautions (for diseases spread by direct or indirect contact), droplet precautions (for diseases spread by large particles in the air), and airborne precautions (for diseases spread by small particles in the air).
By Healthcare Setting
Enhanced Barrier Precautions for Nursing Homes
Virginia Department of Health Resources
- CMS Enhanced Barrier Precautions Memo (3/20/24)
- EBP Poster (12/2023)
- EBP: Quick Guide for Nursing Home IPs (09/2023)
- EBP Frequently Asked Questions (11/30/2022)
- EBP Implementation Algorithm (08/31/2022)
- (NEW) 2022 Updates to EBP for Nursing Homes (11/16/2022)
CDC Resources
- Presentations
- Pre-implementation tool
- Observation tool and summary spreadsheet
- Sample letters
- Nursing home leadership
- Nursing home residents, families, friends, and volunteers
- Nursing home staff
- EBP example sign
- Posters and Pocket Cards
- How We Keep Our Residents Safe (poster)
- Facility EBP Steps (poster)
- Staff pocket guide – EBP (pocket card)
- Frequently asked questions
Additional questions about infection control precautions or considerations for healthcare settings? Please contact hai@vdh.virginia.gov.