Infection Control Manager
Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, US
Sara Townsend is an Infection Prevention manager at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), a three-hospital system supporting one of the largest pediatric systems in the United States. She has been an infection preventionist since 2012 and has worked both adult and pediatric healthcare facilities. Prior to working in infection prevention and control, Sara was a middle school English teacher and then a respiratory therapist where her passion for infection prevention was sparked after being nominated to be an infection prevention champion in 2009.
Actively engaged in APIC since 2013, Sara first served her local chapter 015 (Delaware Valley & Philadelphia) on the Nominating and Awards and Education committees as well as serving as a Director at Large partnering to launch the chapter’s website in 2019. She also served APIC at the national level starting in 2018, serving as a committee member for the Education Committee, assuming the Chair position in 2022. Sara has presented at local and national APIC events as well as at other conferences and is published in topics related to the field of infection prevention and control.
Townsend earned her Bachelor of Arts Degree from LaSalle University and her Master of Quality and Safety in Healthcare degree from Thomas Jefferson School of Population Health. She has been certified in infection control (CIC) since 2014 and was recognized as an APIC Fellow in 2019. Townsend’s passion for highlighting the value of the work of the infection preventionist throughout the continuum of care is brought to life combining her past experiences as a both an educator and a clinician.
