Conditions
- Infections:
- device-related:
- catheter-associated urinary tract infection (CAUTI)
- intravascular line infections, including:
- central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI)
- ventilator-associated pneumonia
- surgical site
- with multidrug-resistant organisms
- Occupational exposures, such as:
- Other healthcare-associated infections, such as:
- hospital-acquired pneumonia
- Outbreaks, such as:
- diarrhoeal illness, such as:
- highly transmissible viruses, such as:
- respiratory illness, such as:
- influenza
- respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)
- SARS-CoV-2
For each presentation and condition, Advanced Trainees will know how to:
Synthesise
- recognise the clinical presentation
- identify relevant epidemiology, prevalence, pathophysiology, and clinical science
- take a comprehensive clinical history
- conduct an appropriate examination
- establish a differential diagnosis
- plan and arrange appropriate investigations
- consider the impact of illness and disease on patients and their quality of life when
developing a management plan
Manage
- provide evidence-based management
- prescribe therapies tailored to patients’ needs and conditions
- recognise potential complications of disease and its management, and initiate
preventative strategies
- involve multidisciplinary teams
Consider other factors
- identify individual and social factors and the impact of these on diagnosis and
management
- Aetiology of common pathogens, such as:
- blood-borne viruses, such as:
- hepatitis:
- human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)
- extended-spectrum beta-lactamase (ESBL):
- methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)
- vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE)
- multidrug-resistant organisms:
- Candida auris
- carbapenem-resistant Enterobacterales (CREs)
- Clostridioides difficile
- gram-negative infections:
- drug-resistant Enterobacterales, such as:
- AmpC
- carbapenemase-producing (CPE)
- multi-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii complex
- multi-resistant Pseudomonas aeruginosa
- those of public health concern, such as:
- Legionella pneumophila
- Listeria monocytogenes
- Neisseria meningitidis
- Aetiology of resistance patterns, generally and locally
- Clinical manifestations, frequency, and pathophysiology of common healthcare-acquired infections
- Colonisation
- Infection prevention consideration, such as:
- antimicrobial stewardship principles
- occupational exposure
- preventive measures for healthcare staff, and required immunisation
- standard and transmission-based precautions
- sterilisation and disinfection procedures
- waste management
- Modes of entry
- Molecular epidemiology techniques
- Outbreak investigation
- Reservoirs and modes of transmission
- Risk factors and pathogenesis for healthcare associated infections, such as:
- bloodstream
- diarrhoeal
- respiratory
- surgical site infection
- urinary tract
- Surveillance principles
- Framework of outbreak preparedness, readiness, and response at a national level
- Local clinical governance and safety quality systems
- Local infection prevention guidelines
- National Safety and Quality Health Service Standards by the Australian Commission on Safety and
Quality in Health Care, and the Ngā Paerewa Health and Disability Services Standard
- Screening of patients for novel or emerging pathogens
- Antimicrobial stewardship, resistance, and prophylaxis, including surgical prophylaxis, and their
impact on host biome
- Changes in host biome, susceptibility, and immunity when hospitalised
- Healthcare-associated infection control requirements in organisational structures, and the use of
indicators for such
- Impact of nosocomial infections on patient health and outcomes
- Pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic strategies to prevent surgical site infections
- Role of surveillance and feedback reporting, the different surveillance systems, and their
validation
Infection control policy development and implementation
- Action plan development
- Cost-benefit analysis
- Evidence base for policy decisions
- Guidelines, such as:
- contagion-specific guidelines, such as those for:
- high-consequence infectious diseases
- local, national, and international clinical standards and protocols
- Mpox
- suspected bioterrorism
- Outbreak preparedness and investigation
Management of multi-resistant organisms
- Attributable mortality and morbidity
- Host risk factors
- Local prevalence and incidence rates
- Prevention of development and transmission, including:
- contract tracing
- detection of colonisation
- principles of antimicrobial stewardship
- transmission-based precautions
- Relationship between colonisation, infection, and resistance mechanisms
- Typical sites of colonisation, including when and how to screen for multi-resistant organisms based
on local guidelines
Principles and practice of infection prevention
- Antisepsis
- Aseptic technique
- Environmental control measures, such as:
- cleaning
- decontamination
- disinfection
- isolation
- sharps disposal
- sterilisation
- Hand hygiene
- Isolation and cohorting strategies
- Measures to control and prevent infection during hospital renovations and/or construction
- Minimisation of device use
- Personal protective equipment (PPE) categories for different scenarios, and appropriate donning and
doffing
- Staff education, health, immunisation, occupational exposures, and training
- Surveillance and outbreak investigation
- Transmission-based precautions, such as:
- airborne
- contact
- droplet
- standard
- Ventilation and air-conditioning systems
- Waste management
- Water systems
