Hands-On Infection Control

World Patient Safety Day - Engaging patients for patient safety
2024-09-17, 2023-09-17

Wound Awareness Week 2024
2024-09-02 - 2024-09-08

Health Tech Forum 2024
2024-08-01 | Blaxland Ballroom – 68 Market St, Sydney NSW 2000.
DRIVING PATIENT-CENTRED INNOVATION
Previously known as the Healthcare Leaders Forum, the now HealthTech Forum adopts a more focused approach to the digital trajectory the industry is currently experiencing. Every year we refine our event model to unlock greater value for our partners and to ensure that our delegation’s expectations are exceeded.
Register here

Communicable Diseases & Immunisation Conference 2024
2024-06-11 - 2024-06-13 | Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre, QLD, QLD, Australia
Communicable Diseases & Immunisation Conference 2024
‘Protecting Communities: Empowering Health throughDisease Control and Immunisation’

World Food Safety Day 2024
2024-06-07
The World Health Organisation has designated 7 June 2024 as World Food Safety Day with the theme being “Food safety: prepare for the unexpected”.
Food safety events refer to situations that involve a potential or confirmed health risk associated with consuming food. These incidents may arise from natural events, food fraud, or accidents. While politicians, food safety authorities, farmers, and food business operators must work diligently to be ready to address food safety issues, consumers also have an active role to play.

RSV Awareness Week 2-8 June 2024
2024-06-02 - 2024-06-08
The Immunisation Foundation of Australia (IFA) invites you to Unite Against RSV and join RSV Awareness Week 2024 from 2-8 June. Following their inaugural RSV Awareness Week, the theme this year for RSV Awareness Week 2024 is ‘I Support RSV Protection’.
IFA is calling on Australians from all walks of life to share why they support protection against severe RSV-related illness.
A range of RSV Awareness Week materials are available to help your organisation get involved. Perhaps you’d like to organise an event, display a poster, share a social media post, or include an article in your newsletter?
The RSV Awareness Week 2024 Campaign Kit is now available on IFA’s website.

GENCA 2024 National Conference 17-19 May 2024 - Ignite the Flame
2024-05-17 - 2024-05-19 | Hilton Brisbane, Australia
The theme, Ignite the flame – empowering nurses for the future, is an inspiring call to action, encouraging nurses to embrace their roles as leaders and change-makers in the healthcare landscape. By participating in this transformative gathering, delegates can harness their full potential, making a positive impact on patient care and contributing to the advancement of their profession. Moreover, the conference will offer you a unique chance to build lasting connections with like-minded individuals, creating a supportive network that extends beyond the conference.

World Hand Hygiene Day
2024-05-05
Objectives of WHHD 2024:

Strengthen learning approaches to enable implementation of innovative and effective training to empower health and care workers to improve hand hygiene and IPC at point of care with enhanced knowledge, skills and behaviours.
Promote access to innovative hand hygiene and IPC training resources for health and care workers.
Raise awareness about the importance of knowledge and learning on hand hygiene at the right times to prevent a range of infectious diseases.
Encourage measurement and evaluation mechanisms to assess the impact of training and education on IPC standards and practices including hand hygiene, including their effect on the prevention of healthcare associated infection (HAI) and antimicrobial resistance (AMR).

My 5 Moments: The Game: This is a compassionate serious game to keep patients and health workers safe by improving hand hygiene practices. It balances the fun, engaging, and enlightening side of gaming with the scientific and theoretical approaches to hand hygiene improvement that will contribute to changes in health worker behaviour in the real world. The game is set in the
International Alien Hospital two hundred years in the future. Players must look after their alien patients and keep earth safe by performing hand hygiene at the right moments.
Click on the link to play the game: My 5 Moments “The Game”

2024 World Health Summit – Regional Meeting
2024-04-22 - 2024-04-24 | Monash University, Wellington Rd, Clayton, VIC, 3800, Australia
Each year, the World Health Summit in Berlin is complemented by a Regional Meeting in a different part of the world, where local and regional topics come to the forefront. Each meeting is hosted by the M8 Alliance member holding the World Health Summit International Presidency, which rotates every year.
The M8 Alliance — the academic foundation of the World Health Summit — has announced Monash University, with support from the Victorian Government, Tourism Australia and the Melbourne Convention Bureau (MCB), will host the 2024 Regional Meeting in Melbourne from 22–24 April.
The 2024 World Health Summit Regional Meeting’s theme is ‘Informed Prevention, Informed Care’, with a focus on the Asia–Pacific region.

Gama Healthcare and ACIPC IPC Tour
2024-04-16
The Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) Tour is a series of in-person seminars across Australia covering national and international insights including:

New IPC developments
Shifting and new paradigms in IPC
Material compatibility
Expert panel discussion

Click here to view the brochure

International Infection Preventionist Day
2024-04-05
International Infection Preventionist Day is an annual observance on the first Friday in April that celebrates the crucial role of infection preventionists in safeguarding public health.

15th Annual Sydney International Endoscopy Symposium (SIES 2024)
2024-03-21 - 2024-03-22 | Hilton Sydney, 488 George Street, Sydney, NSW, 2000, Australia
The 15th Annual Sydney International Endoscopy Symposium (SIES 2024) will be held at Hilton Sydney on 21-22 March 2024.
The program includes focused lectures, hands-on equipment demonstrations, and live endoscopy cases beamed to Hilton Sydney for nursing delegates. Some of the featured topics include GI bleeding, perioperative nursing in interventional endoscopy, EMR-ESD setup, ERCP basics, biliary and luminal dilation/stenting, update on infection control in gastrointestinal endoscopy and much more! The full program is available to view here.
To register click here.

ACCPA Care & Ageing Well Expo Melbourne principal sponsor Mercy Health
2024-02-10 09:30 - 2024-02-11 16:00 (Asia/Shanghai) | Melbourne Convention Exhibition Centre, 1 Convention Centre Place, South Wharf, Victoria, 3006, Australia
Whether you are preparing for your future or caring for a loved one, the Melbourne ACCPA Care & Ageing Well Expo principal sponsor Mercy Health is the perfect place to start, showcasing the products, services and information available to assist you in the decision-making process.
Hear from experts across a range of aged care topics on the Uniting AgeWell Stage, including caring for those with dementia, accessing care, seniors safety and more. The Uniting AgeWell Stage will provide a continuous stream of information from industry experts.
With over 80 aged care exhibitors, including those in Residential Care, Home Care, Retirement Living, Equipment & Service Providers, Health Care, Legal and Financial, Medical, Consultants, Technology and Support Groups.
The expo is free to attend, to register for tickets visit https://events.humanitix.com/care-and-ageing-melbourne-2024

Primary Healthcare Nurses Day
2024-02-07
The first Wednesday in February each year is Primary Health Care Nurses Day, where we celebrate the amazing work that nurses do outside of the hospital setting, in aged care, community, general practice, custodial, schools and a range of other primary health care settings.

Immunisation Coalition 25th Annual Scientific Meeting
2024-02-04 - 2024-02-05 | Parkroyal Melbourne Airport, Tullamarine, Australia

World AMR Awareness Week 18 - 24 November 2023
2023-11-18 - 2023-11-24
World AMR Awareness Week formally Antimicrobial Awareness Week (AAW) is celebrated from 18 – 24 November each year. The theme for 2023 remains Preventing Antimicrobial Resistance Together.
The Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care supports WAAW in Australia by providing a range of resources and coordinating initiatives to support the effective use of antimicrobials in preventing and containing antimicrobial resistance and local activities across the week. https://www.safetyandquality.gov.au/our-work/antimicrobial-stewardship/world-amr-awareness-week#:~:text=World%20AMR%20Awareness%20Week%20(WAAW,18%20%2D%2024%20November%20each%20year.

Perioperative Nurses Week 12 - 18 November 2023
2023-11-12 - 2023-11-18
PNW 2023 starts this week! 12–18 November, the theme is H.E.A.R.T.

Australian Food Safety Week 11 - 18 November 2023
2023-11-11 - 2023-11-18
The Australian Food Safety Week will be held from 11 to 18 November 2023. This year’s theme will be Food safety – dollars and sense. The 2023 campaign will focus on adapting to the increasing cost of living by making savings through reducing food waste and growing your own food while ensuring the food you and your family eat remains safe. The Food Safety Information Council has released a community package of social media tiles, posters, a sample media release for your event as well as a quiz is now available.

ACCPA National Conference - The Aged of Change
2023-10-25 08:00 - 2023-10-27 17:00 | Adelaide Convention Centre, Australia

Clean Hospitals Day
2023-10-20
The objective of Clean Hospitals Day, celebrated each year on October 20, is to raise awareness and foster engagement among healthcare facilities around the world.

Whooping Cough Day - Stay Up-To-Date. Vaccinate!
2023-10-18
With the theme “Stay Up to Date. Vaccinate!”, Immunisation Foundation of Australia (IFA) announced the creation of Australia’s inaugural Whooping Cough Day on November 8. The day highlights the ongoing threat posed by whooping cough (pertussis) and encourages Australians of all ages to remain up to date with booster vaccination.
The campaign reminds people to check their whooping cough immunisation status, provides practical information about boosters and how to access them, and emphasises the importance of adult, pregnancy, and childhood protection.
Campaign key points

Adults require booster vaccines at least every 10 years to stay up to date with whooping cough protection.
More than 80 per cent of Australian adults cannot recall ever receiving a whooping cough booster.
More than half of all cases of whooping cough occur in adults.
Some people – including those with asthma – are at increased risk of severe illness and being hospitalised with the so-called ‘100-day cough’.
Whooping cough is not only dangerous, but also highly contagious. An infected person may unwittingly spread whooping cough to up to 17 unvaccinated people.

To get involved, visit the Immunisation Foundation of Australia website. Support Whooping Cough Day by sharing the campaign toolkit which includes a poster/flyer, educational print out, animated campaign video and social media tiles with key facts.

Infection Prevention and Control Week
2023-10-15 - 2023-10-21
Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) Week is held during the third week of October each year to highlight the importance of infection prevention. Resources will be available on the Commission website closer to the time.

World Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA) Day
2023-10-02
World MRSA Day is observed on the 2nd of October each year, the anniversary of MRSA’s discovery by Professor Patricia Jevons when she first observed Staphylococcus aureus that was resistant to the antibiotic Methicillin. The purpose of the day is to educate the wider community as to the significance that Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) has on health and health care systems around the world.
Staphylococcus aureus (S. aureus) is a part of normal skin flora; the bacteria is not usually a cause for concern. S. aureus can cause infection; however, it is readily treated with regular antibiotics. MRSA, however, is a strain that is resistant to an antibiotic called methicillin which makes treatment difficult. MRSA can be multi-drug resistant in addition to methicillin and is an important pathogen of concern, monitored by health care systems around the world.
There are two modes of transmission: Direct and Indirect. Direct contact is when an individual encounters MRSA by contaminated hands from an infected person and Indirect contact is when an individual touches a surface contaminated with MRSA. MRSA can be found in the nose, throat or on the skin of carriers. In immunocompromised individuals there is a heightened risk of infection with an increase of morbidity and mortality.
The prevention of MRSA infection involves several strategies:

Identification of carriers which involves screening of high-risk consumer groups
Diligent hygiene practices, such as handwashing and use of alcohol-based hand rubs
Correct utilisation of personal protective equipment (PPE)
Suitable cleaning and disinfection of surfaces and medical equipment
Good antimicrobial stewardship practices, to ensure antimicrobials are prescribed and administered correctly.

Unfortunately, due to the rise of the COVID-19 pandemic, many healthcare facilities around the world suspended screening programs for MRSA which has led to an increase in hospital acquired MRSA infections. The increase was made worse due to staff shortages and increases in patient loads.
World MRSA Awareness Month – October

World Rabies Day 2023 - All for 1, One Heath for All
2023-09-28
World Rabies Day is celebrated every year on the 28th September – the anniversary of the death of Louis Pasteur. This year, the theme focuses on the need for collaboration of animal and human health professionals in eliminating rabies to achieve the global goal of ‘Zero by 30’ – global elimination of dog-mediated rabies deaths by 2030, the most common cause of transmission. While Australia is fortunate that it does not have rabies, Australia still needs to remain alert to the potential risk of rabies reaching its shores.

Wounds Awareness Week 4 - 10 September 2023
2023-09-04 - 2023-09-10

2023 FSRACA National Conference
2023-08-09 - 2023-08-11 | Centrepierce at Melbourne Park, South Australia, Australia

Healthcare Leaders Forum 2023
2023-08-03 | The Fullerton Hotel Sydney, 1 Martin Pl, Sydney, NSW, 2000, Australia
Arriving at a critical juncture for the nation’s healthcare community, the Healthcare Leaders Forum will be returning on 3 August 2023.
This is an opportunity to hear exclusive keynote addresses containing the latest, first-hand, fit-for-context healthcare digitisation strategies.
The Forum leverages chat and live-polling interaction tools to ensure you are helping shape the conversation, not just spectating. As our operating environment corrects and the sector begins to unlock, the Forum presents an opportunity for the nation’s healthcare leaders to connect, combat shared challenges and leverage opportunities emerging from the upturn economy.

The Healthcare Leaders Forum secures national and global speakers of unmatched quality and immense authority. Our attendees are charged with shaping the conversation, armed with an array of real-time engagement tools.
Every session is independently moderated to facilitate candid discussion and debate, and the program is designed to provide attendees with valuable opportunities to connect in person on the business that matters.

2023 Adult Immunisation Forum
2023-06-22 | Pan Pacific Hotel, 207 Adelaide Terrace, Perth, WA, 6000, Australia
The 7th Adult Immunisation Forum (AIF) will take place at the Pan Pacific Hotel in Perth on June 22, 2023, immediately following the PHAA’s Communicable Diseases and Immunisation Conference. The meeting is ideal for GPs, practice nurses, and other immunisation specialists. The vaccines to be covered will include pneumococcal disease (PCV 15,20,21), RSV in adults, pertussis in older people, herpes zoster, influenza, Covid-19, Strep A, travel vaccines, as well as paediatric vaccines.Chaired by Prof Robert Booy, confirmed speakers include Professors Tony Cunningham, Peter Richmond, Chris Blyth, and Paul Van Buynder. Information is being updated regularly on the website (visit https://www.immunisationcoalition.org.au/events/adult-immunisation-forum/). It is also an ideal networking opportunity.It is free to attend, with refreshments and lunch provided.This forum is brought to you by the Immunisation Coalition. For more information, go to the website, or contact info@immunisationcoalition.org.au

Communicable Diseases & Immunisation Conference 2023
2023-06-19 - 2023-06-21 | Perth Convention & Exhibition Centre, 21 Mounts Bay Road, Perth, Western Australia, 6000, Australia
The Communicable Diseases & Immunisation Conference 2023 will focus on how we can enhance communicable disease control and better prevent disease through immunisation in Australia and our region. Particular attention will be paid to social and cultural determinants of health, community engagement and implementation issues specific to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander populations, culturally and linguistically diverse communities and marginalised groups.
