IPC doctor profile and training | IPC nurses profile and training | Other IPC training opportunities | Training Needs | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Cyprus | Microbiologist or ID specialist or other doctors No IPC certification No qualification mandated | Work experience in related fields No qualification mandated | Link Nurses: 60-h training programme One 90-ECTS IPC Master program | National training program covering all fields of IPC |
England | Clinical Microbiologists or other doctors No qualification mandated | Registered with the nursing and midwifery council No qualification mandated Pending: Advanced nursing practice in IPC, nursing assistant | Master in IPC Short courses by Hospital Infection Society and Royal College of Nursing | Clearer training pathway into IPC specialization including training requirements and assessment |
France | Medical doctors (microbiology, PH, ID) or pharmacists No qualification mandated 2017: Cross sectional specialised training for medical internship | Nurses Laboratory technicians No qualification mandated 2019: Advanced nursing practice in IPC | 38 post-graduate University degrees in IPC of 1–3 years | Course targeting specific populations and topics Key domains (ie.implementation) should be covered |
Germany | Certified medical specialty (48-month training at a facility which has an authorization for postgraduate medical IPC education and 12-month clinical training); final board examination Doctors: 60-month postgraduate training; medical specialty Doctors: IPC training open to all specialists (200 h) as advanced training | Certified nurse specialty (12-month training program) | 40-h course to become link doctor or link nurse | Increase training opportunities by creating professorships at every university to ensure (1) IPC training of all medical students (2) junior staff promotion (3) structural integrity of long-term IPC programmes |
Greece | Microbiologists, ID specialists or other clinicians with 5-year experience in ID or IPC No qualification mandated | Nursing university degree and 5-year working experience | 5-day training seminar by Greek Society for Infection Control | Standardised country-wide training program Include IPC training in the curricula of ID and Microbiology |
Italy | Doctors specialized in Hygiene and Preventive Medicine or Infectious diseases No qualification mandated No IPC certification | One official Master course in IPC (since 2014) Otherwise no specific qualification required | Short courses at hospital and regional level or within scientific societies on specific topics Accredited online and on-site courses to become link doctors and link nurses | Standardized methodology and approach to IPC training at national level |
Netherlands | Clinical microbiologists 3 months training on IPC out of 60-month specialty training in clinical microbiology | Registered nurses or lab technicians following a training programme of 38 lectures and a minimum of working experience of 18 (Utrecht) to 24 months (Groningen) in an IPC department, as well as writing a thesis | Short courses available for link nurses | Duration of IPC training for doctors too short Lack of expert nurses in IPC |
Poland | Medical Doctors who have completed training course or certified clinical microbiologists, epidemiologists, ID, PH or healthcare management specialists IPC training included in specialty training (4 months out of 48-month clinical microbiology and epidemiology training programme, or 3 days in infectious diseases training programme) | Registered nurses with 2 years of work experience following a 2-year training program (844 h) qualification program | Master program in IPC but not official qualification | Create an independent specialization for doctors and determining the legal frameworks for employment Financial incentive to be addressed for nurses |
Romania | ID and epidemiology involved in hospital IPC activities | IPC is not regulated as stand-alone nursing specialization Formal training and position, following 3-year post-highschool training, followed by a form of postgraduate training in IPC | CME courses organised each year by different medical universities, on topics related to IPC CNE courses organised each year by the Order of General Medical Nurses, Midwives and Medical Nurses, on topics related to IPC | Standardisation and clarification of recognised training, curricula and tasks for IPC doctors and nurses Improve the consistency of the specialty |
Spain | Physicians in preventive medicine and public health (4-year post-graduate period combining 1 year Master degree in public health and clinical residency) | No nationally recognised specialty Employment by public organization require scores on national examinations | Several postgraduate university courses in IPC and AMS or Master degrees (15–60 ECTS) Variety of short courses endorsed by societies | Urgent holistic approach to education and training is warranted Focus on quality improvement, implementation science and communication Align national nurse competencies with European domains |
Switzerland | Doctors with 3-year working experience in any field and 3-year working experience in ID and board examination and 1-year working in IPC again with board examination and at least 1 scientific paper published in IPC field | Certified nurse specialty (2-year IPC training programme after basic studies, including final exam and thesis) | 6-day training to become a link nurse | Strengthening the importance of needs-appropriate IPC training for implementation of minimum requirements for IPC in hospitals |