SUBMITTED BY:
Kristy McBeth, Director, Health Protection
DATE:
October 2021
SUBJECT:
Infection Prevention and Control (IPAC) Hub
BACKGROUND
Ontario Health has identified organizations including hospitals, public health units and others from across the province to lead local Infection Prevention and Control (IPAC) Hubs (Ministry of Health, 2020). These organizations work with partners from across the local health system who have IPAC expertise to ensure that this specialized guidance and support is available to local congregate living settings though a one-window model.
IPAC Hubs:
- Identify and monitor IPAC training and practice needs within their catchment area - including in congregate living settings funded and overseen by the Ministry of Health (MOH), Ministry of Long-Term Care (MLTC), Ministry of Seniors and Accessibility (MSAA), Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing (MMAH) and the Ministry of Children, Community & Social Services (MCCSS).
- Strengthen current partnerships and broker new ones; supporting a network of IPAC service providers and experts; working to align local resources to meet IPAC needs within congregate living settings for both prevention and response. Services will be allocated according to a risk-based framework.
- Bring forward and escalate issues of concern that are outside of the scope of IPAC through established mechanisms with ministry partners.
Local public health and Public Health Ontario (PHO) are key partners in each local IPAC Hub. Working in coordination with the IPAC Hub, public health partners support the provision of IPAC knowledge, training and expertise, and build on existing local partnerships. In addition to contributing to IPAC Hubs as experts, the local public health unit retains the responsibility to oversee the management of outbreaks. Local public health units also have a key linkage to Ministry of Labour, Training, and Skills Development (MLTSD), but does not replace the duties employers of congregate living organizations have to notify the MLTSD as required under the Occupational Health and Safety Act, 1990 and other relevant requirements.
CURRENT INITIATIVES
In collaboration with our local IPAC Hub members, and the current Hub lead Windsor Regional Hospital (WRH), it has been determined that in order to most effectively utilize existing and future human and financial resources, that the WECHU would transition to the role of IPAC Hub for lead for Windsor-Essex effective October 2021. Funding for this initiative, received through Ontario Health, will be allocated to the WECHU to support program deliverables starting in October 2021. This work will be performed through augments to staffing in the Environmental Health Department and will also include FTE allocations from existing staff including Public Health Inspectors. The WECHU’s IPAC Hub program will be an inter-disciplinary team of Public Health Inspectors and Public Health Nurses under the management of a certified Infection Control Practitioner. The current funding for this Hub program is in place until March 31, 2022.
Some of the main WECHU Responsibilities as the local IPAC Hub lead for Windsor and Essex County include:
- The creation of implementation targets and monitoring of progress;
- The establishment of local IPAC Hub priorities for service delivery;
- Leading communication with Hub Partners (Public Health Ontario, hospitals and other providers) and congregate living settings in our defined catchment area
- Maintaining detailed financial records of expenses and supporting weekly reporting requirements.
The WECHU will continue to work collaboratively with partners in the Hub framework with the new model in place in order to facilitate enhanced local supports for infection prevention and control strategies within congregate settings of our community.
DOCUMENTS:
Ministry of Health. (2020, September). Infection Prevention and Control Hubs. Retrieved from IPAC Hub Program Description:
https://www.health.gov.on.ca/en/pro/programs/publichealth/coronavirus/d…