on Compliance with IPC Practice (including cleanliness) for General Practice.
Purpose
The Health and Social Care Act 2008: code of practice on the prevention and control of infection and related guidance, requires the Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) Lead to produce an annual statement.
This statement is to be made available for anyone who wishes to see it, including patient and regulatory authorities and should also be published on the General Practice Website.
Introduction
This Annual Statement has been drawn up on the 2nd December 2025 in accordance with the requirement of the Health and Social Care Act 2008: Code of practice in the prevention and control of infections and related guidance for Abbeyfield Medical Centre. It summarises:
- Infection transmission incidents and actions taken
- IPC audits undertaken and subsequent actions implemented
- Risk assessments undertaken and any actions taken for prevention and control of infection
- Staff training
- Review and update of IPC policies, procedures and guidelines
- Antimicrobial prescribing and stewardship
This statement was drawn up by Michelle Frostick – Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) Lead.
Infection transmission incidents
There have been two significant event reports regarding infection control issues in the last 12-month period. These both relate to MRSA. These have been reported as a notifiable disease within the required 3-day timeframe. All procedures have been reviewed and risk assessed as necessary, and discussions taken place.
IPC Audits and Actions
Hand hygiene Audit – have been completed for all clinical staff 6 monthly and administrative staff yearly – there is also a plan for review as well as capturing all new staff.
Aseptic technique and PPE Compliance Audits – are being carried out for all clinical staff.
Sharps Bin Audits – highlighted expired & unlabelled bins, these were rectified and changed at the time of audit. These are being audited more regularly.
Risk Assessments
Immunisations – The practice will ensure that all staff are up to date with the necessary immunisations required as part of their role.
PPE – appropriate PPE is available to all staff. PPE compliance audits for clinical staff will be carried out and risk assessments carried out dependant on outcomes.
Staff Training
All staff are required to complete the necessary mandatory Infection control e-learning courses.
IPC Policies, procedures and guidance
A comprehensive review of all IPC policies and processes is currently being undertaken, any updates will be made.
All staff know where to access these policies currently. The practice is in the process of migrating to a new system and all staff are updated to the location of policies as these transfers take place.
Antimicrobial prescribing and stewardship
Dr Goel is the lead in this area, and this is monitored and audited at regular intervals throughout the year.
Forward Plan and Quality Improvement plan
| Issue | Actions | Date for completion | Person responsible | Progress |
| Spill Kit Training | To be provided to all nursing staff in the first instance and then all nursing practitioners thereafter | Nursing Staff – February 2026 | St Johns Ambulance Training on-line learning | Some staff have already undertaken this in January 2026 |
| Bi-Annual IPC Inspection to be carried out | To complete a thorough inspection of the sites, and continually work on improvements | February 2026 | Michelle Frostick – IPC Clinical Lead Tracy Deighton – Administrative Lead | Ongoing |
| Antimicrobial Stewardship | To continue to monitor and review for improvements | Ongoing | Dr Sonica Goel and Clinical Pharmacy Team | Regular review taking place |
Completed January 2026
Review Date January 2027