Episodes
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Dental settings present unique infection prevention and control challenges.
In this episode of The Infection Control Exchange Podcast, we explore practical IPAC considerations within dental care and the importance of maintaining consistent infection prevention practices to protect patients and dental professionals.
The conversation examines the realities of infection prevention in dental settings, where close patient contact, procedures, equipment, environmental surfaces, and instrument reprocessing converge in a fast-paced care environment.
Topics discussed include:
⢠Infection prevention and control in dental settings
⢠Routine practices and additional precautions
⢠Hand hygiene
⢠Personal protective equipment
⢠Cleaning and disinfection
⢠Instrument reprocessing
⢠Environmental considerations
⢠Staff education and training
⢠Maintaining consistent infection prevention practices
⢠Supporting patient and staff safetyDental care requires infection prevention practices that are practical, consistent, and integrated into everyday workflows.
Recorded on-site as part of the IPAC Conference Episode Series from the IPAC Canada National Education Conference in Toronto, Ontario.
Hosted by Wayne Tucker, Founder and Host of The Infection Control Exchange Podcast.
The Infection Control Exchange Podcast is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, YouTube, and other major podcast platforms.
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Infection prevention and control in long-term care is not only about responding to outbreaks. It is also about identifying risks early and taking action before they lead to transmission, resident harm, or operational disruption.
In this episode of The Infection Control Exchange Podcast, we explore the role of IPAC risk assessments in long-term care and how a proactive, structured approach can help organizations better understand their vulnerabilities, prioritize improvements, and strengthen their infection prevention and control programs.
The conversation examines how risk assessments can support decision-making across multiple areas of long-term care, including the physical environment, staff practices, resident care activities, cleaning and disinfection, hand hygiene, PPE access, outbreak preparedness, policies, education, and ongoing monitoring.
Topics discussed include:
⢠The purpose of an IPAC risk assessment
⢠Identifying vulnerabilities before they become larger problems
⢠Assessing staff practices and workflows
⢠Environmental and infrastructure risks
⢠Hand hygiene and PPE availability
⢠Cleaning and disinfection
⢠Resident care activities
⢠Outbreak preparedness
⢠Education, policies, and monitoring
⢠Using risk assessment findings to prioritize improvementA strong IPAC risk assessment is more than a checklist. It is an opportunity to look closely at how care is actually delivered, where gaps may exist, and what actions can have the greatest impact on resident and staff safety.
Recorded on-site as part of the IPAC Conference Episode Series from the IPAC Canada National Education Conference in Toronto, Ontario.
Hosted by Wayne Tucker, Founder and Host of The Infection Control Exchange Podcast.
The Infection Control Exchange Podcast is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, YouTube, and other major podcast platforms.
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Missing episodes?
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Fungal pathogens are becoming an increasingly important challenge for infection prevention and control professionals.
In this episode of The Infection Control Exchange Podcast, we explore emerging fungal threats, the growing concern around antifungal resistance, and the implications for healthcare settings, patient safety, and infection prevention practice.
The conversation examines the importance of surveillance, environmental considerations, healthcare-associated transmission, and outbreak readiness, and why fungal pathogens deserve greater attention in the evolving infection prevention landscape.
Topics discussed include:
⢠Emerging fungal pathogens
⢠Antifungal resistance
⢠Surveillance and early detection
⢠Environmental considerations
⢠Risks within healthcare settings
⢠Healthcare-associated infections
⢠Patient safety
⢠Outbreak preparedness and response
⢠The future role of IPAC professionals in responding to fungal threatsRecorded on-site as part of the IPAC Conference Episode Series from the IPAC Canada National Education Conference in Toronto, Ontario.
Hosted by Wayne Tucker, Founder and Host of The Infection Control Exchange Podcast.
The Infection Control Exchange Podcast is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, YouTube, and other major podcast platforms.
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In this episode of The Infection Control Exchange Podcast, Wayne Tucker speaks with Alex from HealthConnex during the IPAC Canada conference.
The conversation focuses on how HealthConnex supports infection prevention and control programs through software solutions for outbreak management, infection surveillance, hand hygiene and PPE auditing, immunization tracking, reporting, compliance readiness, plus more.
This episode explores the importance of having organized systems that help IPAC professionals track infections, monitor trends, support audits, manage key program data, and make timely decisions. It also highlights how technology can strengthen IPAC practice by making information easier to collect, review, report, and act on.
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In this episode of the Infection Control Exchange Podcast, recorded as part of the IPAC Conference Episode Series, we discuss infection prevention and control in correctional settings.
Correctional health environments present unique IPAC challenges because they combine healthcare delivery, congregate living, security requirements, and complex operational realities.
This conversation explores the importance of communicable disease prevention, outbreak preparedness, environmental cleaning, respiratory illness prevention, staff education, and collaboration across healthcare, correctional services, public health, and leadership.
The episode highlights why practical and adaptable IPAC approaches are essential in correctional settings and how infection prevention can support safer environments for staff and individuals receiving care.
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In this episode of the Infection Control Exchange Podcast, we discuss Hantavirus and Ebola virus and what these high-consequence infectious diseases or special pathogens can teach us about infection prevention and control preparedness.
Although Hantavirus and Ebola virus are very different infections, both highlight the need for strong planning, early recognition, risk assessment, communication, training, personal protective equipment, and organizational readiness. These infections may be uncommon, but healthcare settings need to have systems in place before a potential exposure or suspected case occurs.
This conversation explores the important role IPAC professionals play in helping organizations prepare for serious and unusual infectious disease threats. Preparedness is not just about having a policy. It requires practical training, clear processes, access to appropriate PPE, environmental controls, response planning, and confidence among frontline staff and leadership.
Topics include high-consequence infectious disease or special pathogen preparedness, staff education, PPE considerations, early recognition, risk assessment, communication, environmental controls, and the role of IPAC in strengthening readiness across healthcare settings.
This episode was recorded as part of the IPAC Conference Episode Series.
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In this episode of the Infection Control Exchange Podcast, we discuss the important role of infection prevention and control during healthcare construction, renovation, maintenance, and repair projects.
Construction activity in healthcare environments can create infection prevention and control risks related to dust, airflow, water systems, containment, environmental contamination, and disruption to care areas. These risks can be especially concerning in hospitals, long-term care, retirement homes, and other settings that support vulnerable populations.
This conversation highlights why IPAC involvement is essential before, during, and after construction-related work. Construction-related infection prevention is not just about putting up barriers. It requires early planning, risk assessment, communication, monitoring, documentation, and collaboration between IPAC, facilities, contractors, clinical teams, environmental services, and leadership.
In this episode, we explore construction risk assessment, hoarding, dust control, environmental monitoring, airflow and ventilation concerns, water-related risks, and the importance of clear communication throughout the project. We also discuss how strong partnerships across teams can help reduce risk and support safer environments for patients, residents, staff, and visitors.
Healthcare construction and renovation are necessary for maintaining and improving care environments, but these projects must be managed carefully to prevent avoidable infection risks. This episode provides a practical discussion on how IPAC can support safe construction practices and help ensure infection prevention remains part of the project from start to finish.
This episode was recorded as part of the IPAC conference episode series.
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In this episode of the Infection Control Exchange Podcast, recorded on-site as part of the IPAC Conference Episode Series, Wayne Tucker explores education, training, certification, and recertification in infection prevention and control.
With perspectives from APIC and CBIC, the conversation discusses the importance of professional development, lifelong learning, certification pathways, maintaining competency, and supporting IPAC professionals throughout their careers.
This episode is especially relevant for infection preventionists, healthcare leaders, educators, and anyone interested in the ongoing development of the IPAC profession.
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In this episode of the Infection Control Exchange Podcast, recorded on-site as part of the IPAC Conference Episode Series, Wayne Tucker speaks with leaders from APIC about the collaboration between APIC and IPAC Canada.
The conversation explores the value of professional partnerships, shared learning, cross-border collaboration, and the role that organizations can play in supporting infection prevention and control professionals.
This episode highlights how collaboration strengthens the IPAC community and supports ongoing learning, leadership, and connection across healthcare settings.
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In this episode of the Infection Control Exchange Podcast, we discuss the important role IPAC Hubs play in supporting infection prevention and control across long-term care, retirement homes, and other settings.
IPAC Hubs provide valuable guidance, education, outbreak support, risk assessment assistance, and practical infection prevention and control expertise to organizations across the sector.
This conversation explores:
- The role and purpose of IPAC Hubs
- How IPAC Hubs support long-term care, retirement homes and other settings.- Education, coaching, and practical IPAC guidance- Outbreak preparedness and response support- Collaboration between IPAC Hubs and healthcare organizations- The importance of building stronger IPAC systems across the sector
This episode highlights how IPAC Hubs help strengthen infection prevention and control practices, support resident safety, and build capacity within long-term care, retirement homes and other settings.
Host: Wayne Tucker
Podcast: Infection Control Exchange Podcast
Website: www.infectioncontrolexchange.comPlease like, comment, and subscribe for more conversations focused on infection prevention and control, healthcare leadership, long-term care, outbreak management, and system-level improvement.
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This special preview episode of the Infection Control Exchange Podcast highlights some of the important conversations that will be recorded live during the upcoming IPAC Canada 2026 National Conference in Toronto, Ontario.
Topics already booked for the conference podcast series include:
⢠IPAC and the Butterfly Model⢠Education, Training, and Certification Pathways in IPAC⢠Emerging Fungal Pathogens and Antifungal Resistance⢠IPAC Risk Assessment in Long-Term Care⢠Virulent Scabies in Healthcare Settings⢠Infection Prevention in Correctional Health⢠IPAC in Dental Healthcare⢠Healthcare Construction and Renovation Risk Management
This episode provides a brief overview of the range of topics, emerging challenges, and healthcare environments that will be explored during the conference conversations.
The Infection Control Exchange Podcast will be recording onsite throughout the conference and a limited number of podcast recording opportunities are still available for attendees interested in participating.
Thank you for listening to the Infection Control Exchange Podcast.
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Hand Hygiene: The Simplest Practice We Still Get Wrong
𧟠World Hand Hygiene Day Special EpisodeWe all know hand hygiene is importantâbut what if compliance drops at the exact moment it matters most⌠during outbreaks?
In this episode of the Infection Control Exchange, we explore why hand hygiene failures are often not a knowledge problem, but a behaviour, systems, and culture problem.
Topics include:
Why compliance declines under pressureThe gap between audits and real-world practiceThe limitations of traditional hand hygiene monitoringThe impact outbreaks have on performancePractical strategies to improve accountability and cultureEffective hand hygiene can reduce healthcare-associated infections by up to 50%, making it one of the most important infection prevention measures we have.
This episode also features a brief sponsor segment with HealthConnex discussing how digital tools can support audit tracking, outbreak management, and infection prevention analytics.
đď¸ Infection Control Exchange â where we take infection prevention from policy to practice.
đ https://www.infectioncontrolexchange.com
To request a demo, please use the following link: đ https://www.healthconnex.ai/infectioncontrolexchange
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Outbreak Management in Healthcare
Outbreaks donât fail because we donât know what to do â they can fail when systems canât keep up in real time.
In this episode of the Infection Control Exchange, we explore how outbreaks actually unfold across healthcare settings and why traditional approaches to tracking and managing cases often break down under pressure.
Drawing on experience across public health, acute care, and long-term care, this episode focuses on the operational realities of outbreak response â and whatâs needed to improve visibility, coordination, and speed when it matters most.
How outbreaks escalate across units and teamsThe limitations of manual tracking systemsWhy real-time visibility is criticalWhat better outbreak management can look likeHealthConnex supports healthcare teams with:
Outbreak trackingAudit and compliance toolsImmunization data managementIn this episode: Sponsored by HealthConnex
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Infection prevention and control is often viewed as the responsibility of IPAC teamsâbut in reality, successful IPAC programs depend on alignment among key internal and external stakeholders across the entire healthcare system.
In this episode of The Infection Control Exchange Podcast, we explore the critical role of both internal and external stakeholders in shaping IPAC outcomes.
From frontline staff and physicians to leadership, environmental services, facilities teams, and public health partnersâeach group plays a vital role in reducing risk and supporting safe care environments.
We also examine common breakdowns in stakeholder engagement and how healthcare leaders can strengthen relationships, improve communication, and build shared accountability across the system.
This episode is designed for healthcare leaders, infection prevention professionals, and anyone involved in delivering safe, high-quality care.
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Outbreak Line Listing: Why the Details Matter in Infection Prevention and Control
In this episode of The Infection Control Exchange Podcast, we take a deep dive into one of the most importantâand often underappreciatedâtools in outbreak management: the line list.
Using an outbreak scenario, this episode walks through the structure of a line list and explains how each data element contributes to effective outbreak control.
Topics covered include:
⢠Case identification and unit tracking⢠Symptom documentation and baseline considerations⢠The importance of symptom onset timelines⢠Intervention tracking, including vaccination and antiviral⢠Identifying complications and severity indicators⢠Interpreting laboratory test results⢠Common mistakes that impact outbreak response
Line lists are more than documentationâthey are the foundation for surveillance, decision-making, and communication during outbreaks.
This episode is particularly relevant for IPAC professionals, acute care teams, long-term care teams, and public health practitioners.
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Why Healthcare Workers Should Never Work While Sick
In this episode of The Infection Control Exchange Podcast, Wayne Tucker explores an important but often overlooked infection prevention risk in healthcare settings: staff working while sick.
While healthcare workers are deeply committed to their patients/residents and colleagues, reporting to work with symptoms can unintentionally increase the risk of respiratory viruses and other infectious diseases transmission within healthcare settings, and could lead to an outbreak.
In this 15-minute episode, Wayne discusses:
Why presenteeism remains common in healthcare organizations
The infection prevention risks associated with symptomatic staff
How workplace culture and staffing pressures can influence decision-making
The critical role of leadership in reinforcing safe practices
Why protecting patients, residents, and colleagues must always be the priority
This episode highlights how everyday decisions made by healthcare workers play a key role in preventing the spread of infections within healthcare settings.
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In this Infection Control Exchange â Quick Insight episode, Wayne Tucker discusses the critical role leadership plays in the success of infection prevention and control programs.
While IPAC is often associated with technical practices such as PPE, hand hygiene, and environmental cleaning, the effectiveness of these measures is strongly influenced by organizational leadership.
In this episode, Wayne explores:
Why infection prevention should be viewed as a systems issue rather than simply a policy issue
How leadership behaviour influences staff behaviour and compliance with infection prevention practices
The importance of ensuring adequate resources and organizational support for infection prevention programs
How strong leadership contributes to building a culture of patient safety
Effective infection prevention programs depend not only on guidelines and protocols, but also on leadership that actively supports and prioritizes patient safety.
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When Infection Control Becomes Theatre
Infection prevention and control measures are designed to reduce risk and protect patients, residents, and healthcare workers. But during times of crisisâparticularly during the COVID-19 pandemicâsome practices emerged that raised an important question:
Were they truly reducing infection risk, or were they primarily providing reassurance?
In this episode of the Infection Control Exchange Podcast, Wayne Tucker explores the concept of âIPAC theatre.â These are highly visible practices that appear protective but may not always deliver meaningful infection control benefits.
Topics discussed in this episode include:
⢠The concept of infection control theatre
⢠Why visible actions can sometimes replace evidence-based interventions
⢠Temperature screening for staff and visitors during the pandemic
⢠The difference between risk reduction and perceived safety
⢠How public expectations, leadership decisions, and politics can influence infection control measures
⢠The importance of continually evaluating whether interventions are effective, proportional, and evidence-informedInfection prevention and control are about reducing risk, not performing safety measures. This episode explores how IPAC professionals can maintain scientific integrity while navigating public expectations and organizational pressures.
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In this episode of The Infection Control Exchange Podcast, Wayne Tucker steps behind the mic to share the story behind the platform.
This episode explores:
⢠The professional journey that led to the creation of the podcast
⢠24+ years of healthcare leadership experience across public health, long-term care, acute care, and primary care
⢠Advanced education, including an MSc in Infection Control and an Executive MBA
⢠Dual infection prevention certifications (CIC and LTC-CIP)
⢠Experience leading outbreaks, construction IPAC initiatives, and system improvement projects
⢠Why infection prevention gaps continue to exist in healthcare
⢠The vision for The Infection Control Exchange podcast and the broader EcosystemThis episode is for healthcare leaders, infection prevention professionals, consultants, and organizations seeking innovative, system-level thinking in infection control and patient safety.
The Infection Control Exchange Podcast is committed to strengthening infection prevention practice through leadership, innovation, and collaboration.
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Infection Control Saves Lives isnât just a statementâitâs a practical truth that plays out every day in healthcare.
In this episode of The Infection Control Exchange, Wayne Tucker explores a mindset shift that can change practice under pressure: moving from seeing IPAC as âcomplianceâ to seeing it as life-saving care.
Youâll hear how everyday actionsâhand hygiene, correct PPE use, environmental cleaning, and source controlâinterrupt transmission pathways and prevent infections that can lead to serious complications, hospitalizations, and deathâespecially in vulnerable patients and residents.
This episode also highlights the role of leadership in safety culture: when leaders model IPAC practices and remove barriers (time, supplies, workflow), safer behavior becomes possible and sustainable.
Key topics:
The âlife-saving lensâ for every shift
How small lapses become large outcomes
Practical, high-impact behaviors that reduce transmission
Leadership accountability and systems that support IPAC
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