Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 21, 2026
Microbial Control and Monitoring Strategies for Cleanroom Environments and Cellular Therapies
Published on: March 17, 2023
Infection control practices in facilities for highly infectious diseases across Europe
H C Maltezou1, F M Fusco, S Schilling
1Hellenic Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Athens, Greece. helen-maltezou@ath.forthnet.gr
Background:
The management of patients with highly infectious diseases (HIDs) is a challenge for healthcare provision requiring a high level of care without compromising the safety of other patients and healthcare workers.
Aim:
To study the infection control practice in isolation facilities participating in the European Network for Highly Infectious Diseases (EuroNHID) project.
Methods:
A survey was conducted during 2009 of 48 isolation facilities caring for patients with HIDs in 16 European countries. Checklists and standard evaluation forms were used to collect and interpret data on hand hygiene, routine hygiene and disinfection, and waste management.
Findings:
Forty percent of HIDs had no non-hand-operated sinks or alcohol-based antiseptic distributors, while 27% did not have procedures for routine hygiene, final disinfection, or safe discarding of non-disposable objects or equipment. There was considerable variation in the management of waste and in the training of housekeeping personnel. EuroNHID has developed recommendations for hand hygiene, disinfection, routine hygiene, and waste management.
Conclusions:
Most aspects of hand hygiene, routine hygiene and disinfection, and waste management were considered at least partially adequate in the majority of European isolation facilities dedicated for the care of patients with HIDs. But considerable variability was observed, with management of waste and training of housekeeping personnel being generally less satisfactory.
Related Concept Videos
01:22Healthcare Associated Infections II: Preventive Measures
The best practices for preventing healthcare-associated infections include hand hygiene, patient risk...
01:26Standard Precaution
Hand hygiene is the most crucial means to prevent the transmission of disease. Employers are legally required to provide their workers with personal protective equipment (PPE) to minimize exposure or contact with...
01:20Infection
The chain begins with pathogens: bacteria, viruses, fungi, prions, or parasites such as protozoa helminths. These can be present on the skin as transient or resident flora, or they can be acquired from the environment. Identifying and treating the type of infection and...
01:25Transmission-based Precautions II: Airborne and Protective Environment
Airborne precautions:
Use airborne precautions when treating patients known or suspected to have diseases that spread through the air—for example, tuberculosis or measles. These organisms are present in smaller droplets expelled by an infected person and...
01:17Transmission-based Precautions I: Contact, Enteric, and Droplets
Contact Precautions:
Contact precautions are the measures taken to prevent the transmission of infectious agents, especially epidemiologically important microorganisms such as MRSA or influenza, primarily transmitted through direct or indirect contact with an...
01:26Healthcare Associated Infections I: Iatrogenic, Exogenic and Endogenic
HAIs significantly increase the cost of health care. Extended stays in healthcare institutions, increased disability, increased costs of medications, including specialized antibiotics, and prolonged recovery times add to the patient's expenses and the healthcare institution and funding bodies. Common...