Hospitals are required to be efficient, cost effective and above all, sate for patients, visitors and staff. Patients who acquire nosocomial infections generally stay in hospitals longer, utilise more resources and can be the
source of other infections. Staff may also suffer from occupationally acquired infections which can range from being mild to life threatening.
During the 1970's, the need to reduce the incidence of infections in hospitals saw the introduction of multidisciplinary Infection Control Committees. Their responsibility is to develop, implement, evaluate and modify control measures aimed at reducing nosocomial infections.
Infection Control Practitioners were appointed with the delegated authority to manage Infection Control Programs on a day-to-day basis. This enabled programs to become pro-active rather than reactive, focusing heavily on infection prevention in the first instant.