Ms Vivian Leung1,2,3, Ms Elizabeth Orr1, A/Prof Caroline Marshall1,2,3
1Infection Prevention and Surveillance Service, Royal Melbourne Hospital, Melbourne, Australia
2Victorian Infectious Diseases Service, Royal Melbourne Hospital, Melbourne, Australia
3Department of Infectious Diseases, University of Melbourne at the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, Parkville, Australia
Method/Actions: In 2021, the Royal Melbourne Hospital recognised the need for a hospital epidemiologist to be embedded within the Infection Prevention and Surveillance Service (IPSS). The epidemiologist is responsible for leading core data collection, management, analysis and reporting to support routine infection prevention work. In addition, the epidemiologist supports the service with surveillance of healthcare associated infections, monitoring of key performance indicators and evaluation of interventions.
Results: Since the addition of the epidemiologist to IPSS, the service has been able to improve existing processes for contact tracing and streamline surveillance data management, including moving from paper to electronic data collection and reporting for a number of KPIs, including occupational exposures. The epidemiologist has built capacity for enhanced data collection to cope with surge demand, including implementation of contact tracing software. The role has expanded the service’s ability to present data in real time to stakeholders, producing evidence to drive change.
Conclusions: The addition of an epidemiologist to the infection prevention service has improved data management processes and allowed the service to synthesise data and communicate findings more effectively.
Background: Hospital infection prevention and control units typically consist of infection prevention clinical nurse consultants, infectious diseases physicians and administrative support, but seldom include epidemiologists. The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on staff and patients at Royal Melbourne Hospital highlighted the requirement to synthesise all available data sources data and use them in real time to identify emerging risks and challenges in patient care, health workforce safety and service delivery.
Biography: Vivian is an epidemiologist and joined the Victorian Infectious Diseases Service and Infection Prevention and Surveillance Service (IPSS) at Royal Melbourne Hospital in 2021, where she also leads the newly established IPSS data team. Prior to this, she worked on influenza surveillance and clinical studies of influenza vaccine responses at the WHO Influenza Centre at the Doherty.