Ms Emma Cockroft1, Ms Claire Boardman1, Ms Donna Cameron1,2, Dr Louise Hobbs3, A/Prof Noleen Bennett4, Ms Lesley Lewis1, Mr William Harrisson1
1Department of Health Victoria, Melbourne, Australia,
2University of Melbourne, Melbourne , Australia
3Safer Care Victoria, Melbourne, Australia
4VICNISS Coordinating Centre, Melbourne, Australia
Method: An email inbox (Covid19InfectionControl@health.vic.gov.au) was developed and monitored 7 days/week by an IPC Lead (senior IPC consultant). Initially this resource was part of the IPC Advice Cell but became the responsibility of the expanded Infection Prevention Control Advice Response (IPCAR) Team. A database was developed to log each email request and response which enabled a thematic analysis of issues and informed development of the IPC education modules. https://www.vicniss.org.au/resources/ipc-elearning-modules
Results: The COVID-19 inbox received approximately 4,804 email requests from 1 April 2020 to 28 Feb 2022. Most requests came from within the DH (33%), followed by the IPCAR response team (25%) and other government departments (17%). Most requests related to PPE (23%) followed by quarantine/exposure (18%) and cleaning (12%). The month with the most requests was October 2021 (439 requests) which corresponded with protests occurring across Victoria.
Conclusion: The COVID-19 email inbox was integral in managing the large number of requests for IPC advice to DH throughout the pandemic. It provided a centralised place for requests, which could be accessed by a rostered IPC Lead. The database provided information to inform resource allocation and clinical accountability through logged requests and responses and a targeted education package.
Background: To provide a central source of expert evidence-based Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) advice, an email enquiry inbox was developed early April 2020 by the Department of Health (DH). With increasing global cases of COVID-19 concerns arose in the Victorian community, including business, health, education, ports, community services and the general public.
Biography: Emma is an Infection Prevention Consultant and is currently the Manager of Infection Prevention Control Advice and Strategy (COVID-19) at the Department of Health in Victoria. Emma has broad nursing and midwifery experience in acute and public health programs in metropolitan Melbourne, outback Australia and international settings. Motivated by an interest in the impact that strong leadership, governance and systems has on people’s health outcomes, Emma has recently completed a Master of Healthcare Leadership .