R46 Response Accepted

ICM direct responsibility

Recommendation

Health Boards should ensure that the Infection Control Manager has direct responsibility for the infection prevention control service and its staff.

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 confirmed that the ICM has overall responsibility for coordinating prevention and control of infection throughout the organisation, with direct responsibility for the IPC service and its staff.
- The HAI Standards define the ICM role as having operational management of the Infection Prevention and Control Team, with accountability for service delivery and staff management.
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 clearly states that the Infection Control Manager (ICM) has overall responsibility for coordinating prevention and control of infection throughout the NHS board area and delivering the board-approved infection prevention and control programme. The ICM is also responsible for establishing clear mechanisms for access to specialist infection prevention and control advice and support. This confirms the ICM's direct responsibility for the infection prevention and control service.

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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 addresses IPC management structure and direct responsibility for IPC services.

View detailed findings

National standards framework addresses ICM role and responsibilities.

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