What you need to know about infections at UHN
The Infection Prevention and Control (IPAC) department at UHN is devoted to protecting patients from health care-associated infections (HAIs).
Hand Hygiene
The single most important action you can take to prevent the spread of infections is to wash your hands often and thoroughly. Whether you use soap and water (wash for at least 15 seconds) or alcohol-based hand sanitizer (rub hands together for at least 15 seconds), Hand Hygiene is crucial to decrease the spread of infection in hospitals.
HAIs include:
IPAC provides hospital-wide services for the prevention and control of HAIs such as:
- Tracking infection rates
- Educating patients and their families
- Educating clinical and non-clinical hospital staff
- Implementing best practices to prevent and control HAIs
- Working with UHN management and staff to ensure good hand hygiene
If you have concerns about any HAI, IPAC, working together with your health care provider, will be able to answer any questions you have and provide you or your family with UHN brochures on these topics.
About Infection Prevention and Control
IPAC is a corporate department that covers all UHN sites. The department includes physicians, epidemiologists (who track infections), Infection Control Professionals (who work directly with clinical areas) behavioural change specialists, a hand hygiene audit team and others, who all work to ensure our patients and staff have the best resources available to prevent and control the spread of infections at UHN.
Learn more about how Infection Prevention & Control works for our patients » 
