In response to challenges faced by many health facilities in Malawi failing their Ministry of Health Inspections due to Infection, Prevention & Control (IPC) practices, Doctors Worldwide facilitated a number of IPC training sessions during their deployment to Malawi this summer 2022 for staff at 26 clinics that we are supporting.
The aim of these training sessions were:
- To train participants in updated Infection, Prevention & Control (IPC) and Water, Sanitation, Hygiene (WASH) standards.
- To demonstrate key IPC and WASH practices
- Reinforce understanding and application of healthcare waste management
A 1-day training session in both Mangochi and Blantyre was organised by DWW and our partner organisation in Malawi. Training included theory, case studies and demonstrations with content covering:
- Standard Precautions
- Transmission based precautions
- Hand hygiene
- Rational Use of PPE
- Environmental cleaning
- Instrument and patient equipment Decontamination
- Health Care Waste Management (HCWM)
The impact of this training should not be understated, as most attendees had no previous training in IPC, and were eager to learn, especially due to the change in government guidance as a result of the impact of COVID-19. At the end of the training, participants demonstrated increased knowledge on all topics covered, with an average mark of 72% on the post-training test, an increase of 14% in comparison to their pre-training test result.
Overall:
- 68 staff members trained
- 16 doctors trained
- 16 nurses trained
- 18 health facilities/clinics including 8 maternity clinics
- 78% demonstrated an improvement in skills/knowledge post training
- 80% (of respondents surveyed) found the learning outcomes conducive to learning
- 80% (of respondent surveyed) are now confident to implement and carry out IPC/WASH practices
- 90% (of respondent surveyed) found the content of the course useful to their work
- 85% (of respondent surveyed) found the course made them feel more competent or skillful in their work
Read more about our work in Malawi / Support Doctors Worldwide.
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