Greater involvement of doctors, administrators needed in infection prevention and control: Telangana’s Commissioner of Health and Family Welfare

Telangana Commissioner of Health and Family Welfare R.V. Karnan being presented with a certificate by the organisers of G-SPARC conference in Hyderabad on Saturday.
| Photo Credit: Siddharth Kumar Singh

The Telangana government is taking steps to improve Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) across government hospitals, envisaging a greater role for clinical staff and administrative leaders, said Commissioner of Health and Family Welfare R.V. Karnan in Hyderabad on Saturday (October 5).

He highlighted the importance of active participation by doctors and facility administrators in IPC efforts and the need for a dedicated IPC budget in the State to ensure smooth implementation of infection control activities.

According to World Health Organisation (WHO), IPC is a practical, evidence-based approach to prevent avoidable infections in patients and healthcare workers. IPC encompass all aspects of healthcare, including hand hygiene, surgical site infections, injection safety and antimicrobial resistance (AMR).

While speaking at the Global South Conference on Infection Prevention and Control and Antimicrobial Stewardship (G-SPARC) conference in Hyderabad, Mr. Karnan said the government has already rolled out IPC programmes in 21 government healthcare facilities in 13 districts of Telangana.

“To move forward, the involvement of clinical staff in IPC activities is essential. Since August 2022, the health department has been conducting IPC assessments in these select 21 facilities. These assessments helped identify gaps in infection control practices, leading to corrective measures, training and mentoring of healthcare staff,” Mr. Karnan further said.

To ensure comprehensive infection control, the State has set up IPC Technical Working Groups. Medical superintendents were instructed to appoint Infection Control Officers (ICO) and Infection Control Nurses (ICN) in their respective facilities.

Between August 2022 and May 2024, the 21 selected hospitals improved their IPC scores, progressing from baseline to intermediate levels based on departmental scoring criteria. Mr. Karnan also commended the top-performing facilities in hand hygiene compliance, naming CHC-Paloncha, District Hospital-Bodhan, Area Hospital-Bhadrachalam, Area Hospital-Mulugu, and Area Hospital-Zaheerabad as leading examples of effective IPC implementation.