Labcold are backing International Infection Prevention Week (IIPW) 2014 to help raise awareness of healthcare-associated infections.

HCAIs, as they are more commonly known, cost the NHS an estimated £1 billion every year and have a major impact on the availability of beds in hospitals, with infected patients requiring, on average, an extra 11 days of care.

IIPW, which is led by the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC), takes place during the third week of October each year to highlight the effect infection control has on patient safety.

This year’s main focus is on antibiotic resistance, which you can read about on the APIC website, and the roles that different people play in preventing the spread of infection.

Care Shop, a UK healthcare supplier, are urging customers to refresh infection prevention guidelines with their four informative posters to ensure all carers, patients or residents and visitors are aware of their individual responsibilities.

The posters were created with the help of the Infection Prevention Society (IPS) and feature key guidelines that need to be remembered, such as handing bodily fluids safely and regularly cleaning areas such as kitchens and fridges with disinfectant products. Visit the Care Shop website to download your copies today.