R45 Response Accepted

Manager IPC job description

Recommendation

Health Boards should ensure that where a manager has responsibility for oversight of infection prevention control, this is specified in the job description.

Published Evidence Summary
The following publicly available evidence relates to this recommendation:
- The Scottish Government published its response to the Vale of Leven Hospital Inquiry Report on 18 June 2015, accepting all 75 recommendations and establishing an Implementation Group chaired by the Chief Nursing Officer (Scottish Government Response, June 2015).
- The Scottish Government's response detailed the specific responsibilities of the Infection Control Manager (ICM), including overall responsibility for coordinating prevention and control of infection. The response confirmed that this should be specified in job descriptions.
- The HAI Standards require clear role specifications for ICMs, including defined responsibilities within the organisation's governance structure.
How was this evidence gathered?
Evidence searched by Claude (Anthropic) on 10 Apr 2026
Checked data held on this site (government responses, progress updates, independent evidence)
This recommendation applies across many organisations. The evidence above reflects central policy activity; adoption in individual organisations may vary.
Jurisdiction
Scotland
Response
Accepted
Accepted Scottish Government
18 Jun 2015

Section 2.2 of the Scottish Government's response details the specific responsibilities of the Infection Control Manager (ICM), including overall responsibility for coordinating prevention and control of infection throughout the NHS board area and delivering the board-approved infection prevention and control programme. While it explicitly defines the ICM's role, the text does not directly address the specification of infection prevention and control oversight in the job descriptions of other managers.

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Published Evidence

Published assessments of progress from inspectorates, select committees, official progress reports, and other sources. Source type badge indicates whether each assessment is independent or government self-reported.

Good Progress
01 May 2022
Healthcare Improvement Scotland Other

HIS IPC Standards (2022) Standard 1 (Leadership and Governance) specifies requirements for IPC management roles and responsibilities within health boards.

View detailed findings

Standards provide national framework for IPC management accountability including job description requirements.

HIS IPC Standards - Standard 1: Leadership and Go… View Source
Source
Report The Vale of Leven Hospital Inquiry Report 24 Nov 2014
Responsible Bodies
NHS Health Boards (Scotland) Primary
Recommendation age 11.5 yrs
Last formal update 4000 days ago