LDPM 16 - Advancing Infection Prevention: Navigating Staffing Growth and Implementing a Career Ladder

Background: In 2019, our acute-care hospital was licensed for 217 beds, and by 2023, we have expanded our capacity to accommodate 357 beds. Within this time frame we have also expanded our operating rooms, catheterization labs, interventional radiology, center for interventional endoscopy and increased our number of ambulatory sites. This growth resulted in additional responsibilities for our infection prevention (IP) team, and a need to assess the resources necessary to provide adequate coverage.

Methods: Multiple studies have explored the resources necessary for appropriate staffing ratios for IP departments. In 2020, we conducted a literature review of studies that focused on IP staffing and career ladders to present to our Chief Nursing Officer (CNO). Historically, most executive leaders have focused their IP staffing based on hospital bed-size alone without accounting for procedural areas, mixed-case index, or scope of outpatient responsibilities. Our team used the 2012 New York State acute care bed equivalent to calculate IP staffing ratios for our facility.

Results: In 2019, our IP department consisted of two full-time equivalents (FTEs) with the sole designation of Infection Preventionist. Fast forward to 2023, and our department has thrived, growing to 4.8 FTEs with diversified roles, including: IP Associate, IP Coordinator, Infection Preventionist, and IP Manager. Our advocacy led to the successful implementation of a part-time IP coordinator position on the weekends for 2023. This strategic move resulted in a remarkable decline in communicable disease exposures, dropping from 163 incidents in 2022 to just 36 in 2023.

Conclusions: Our career ladder follows the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology (APIC) Infection Preventionist Competency Model, delineating a clear progression from novice to expert in each job description. This structured career progression has demonstrated enhanced staffing retention and created pathways for non-clinical IP team members to enter and excel in the field.