VIPTA is a statewide infection prevention and control education collaborative, led by the Virginia Healthcare-Associated Infections Advisory Group. Through partnership, VIPTA curates IPC resources for Virginia’s healthcare, congregate care, and public health settings.
Wrap It Up: Infection Prevention Wound Care Resources
We’ve done the wrapping and you get to open the educational package! Whether you’re refreshing staff education, strengthening your wound care program, or looking for practical teaching tools, these free resources are ready to help you put infection prevention into practice.
What to Expect:
Wound Care Educational Handout: A colorful, easy-to-follow visual resource that highlights key infection prevention practices before, during, and after wound care.
TRAIN Virginia Wound Care Series: Start with “VDH: Wound Care Infection Risks and Your Infection Prevention Program” (Course ID 1127475) and continue through the full series exploring infection prevention principles, common infection transmission risks, and evidence-based practices through interactive scenarios and knowledge checks.
VDH Wound Care Infection Prevention and Control Guidance & Observation Tool: A ready-to-use observation checklist that you can use for audits, competency validation, and helps standardize wound care practices across your facility.
How to use it:
- Observe before you educate. Use the observation tool to identify your team’s strengths and opportunities, then tailor education to the practices you actually see instead of guessing where knowledge gaps exist.
- Make observations less intimidating. Use the checklist as a coaching tool rather than an audit, creating opportunities for real-time feedback and discussion.
- Who else should be trained? Anyone who assists during wound care, including nursing assistants and other healthcare personnel who provide an extra set of hands, should understand infection prevention practices that help protect the patient.
Target Audience: Foundational & Intermediate IPC Education Level
Bug Busters!
This month, we are featuring the UVA Health Infection Prevention and Control (IP&C) team and their Bug Busters program!
Attending the IP Roadshow with Ginger Vanhoozer from the Virginia Department of Health (VDH) inspired Julianna Felsher, Jim Hovanec, Ann Sidebottom, and Fati Craighead to bring fun infection prevention and control education to acute care at UVA Health University Medical Center in Charlottesville, Virginia.
In August 2024, the IP&C team launched a mobile poster board initiative to deliver timely, engaging education across units. The cart (with candy, of course!) features rotating content on key topics like catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs), central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSIs), and other relevant infection prevention efforts. Each section is updated monthly, with educational materials attached via Velcro® for easy customization. The team spends about 30 minutes per unit, giving staff the flexibility to engage around their clinical duties. Creative themes–such as December’s festive “Grinch Busters”–help draw attention and boost participation.
Bug Busters has been very well received by the staff who have commented on how much they love the colorfulness of the board, the informal setting, and of course, the candy! The casual nature of education encourages staff to ask questions that they may not have realized they even had. They have even had departments such as wound care ask how they can create their own education programs just like this one.
Thank you to the UVA Health IP&C team for sharing your program with us and helping our readers find creative ways to bring education to the masses!
