The principles of infection prevention and control — Awarding Body for the Built Environment Occupational Qualification Health & Social Care Revision
This element focuses on the essential principles and practices for preventing and controlling infections within maternity healthcare settings. It equips he
Topic Synopsis
This element focuses on the essential principles and practices for preventing and controlling infections within maternity healthcare settings. It equips healthcare support workers with the knowledge of statutory regulations, risk assessment, standard precautions, and the correct use of personal protective equipment to safeguard mothers, newborns, and healthcare staff from healthcare-associated infections.
Key Concepts & Core Principles
- Anatomy and physiology of the female reproductive system, including the menstrual cycle, fertilisation, implantation, and fetal development across trimesters.
- Antenatal care pathways, including screening tests, monitoring maternal and fetal wellbeing, and supporting women with common pregnancy discomforts.
- Physiological and psychological changes during labour and birth, stages of labour, pain relief options, and the role of the support worker in providing comfort and advocacy.
- Postnatal care for mother and baby, including perineal care, breastfeeding support, neonatal checks, and recognising signs of postnatal depression or complications.
- Infection prevention and control, safeguarding, and legal/ethical frameworks specific to maternity care, including consent and confidentiality.
Exam Tips & Revision Strategies
- In a written or oral assessment, always link your infection control practices to specific legislation (e.g., the Health and Social Care Act 2008 Code of Practice) and your employer’s policies. Mentioning the 'hierarchy of controls' demonstrates a systematic understanding.
- When observed in practice or simulation, narrate your actions: vocalize why you are putting on an apron for a particular procedure or why you are cleaning a surface before and after use. This shows assessors your underpinning knowledge.
- Ensure you can explain the difference between 'clean', 'aseptic', and 'sterile' techniques and give maternity-specific examples, such as that perineal care is a clean procedure, while catheterisation requires aseptic technique.
Common Misconceptions & Mistakes to Avoid
- Confusing standard precautions with additional precautions; learners often fail to differentiate when to apply contact, droplet, or airborne precautions based on a risk assessment for specific infections like MRSA or influenza in the maternity ward.
- Assuming that wearing gloves replaces hand hygiene; learners commonly overlook the requirement to perform hand hygiene before donning and after removing gloves, or fail to change gloves between different care activities for the same woman.
- Underestimating the importance of environmental cleaning; students may not link the role of cleaning schedules and decontamination of shared equipment (e.g., dopplers, blood pressure cuffs) to breaking the chain of infection in a maternity setting.
Examiner Marking Points
- Award credit for clearly outlining the responsibilities of the healthcare support worker and others (e.g., registered midwife, infection control lead) in reporting and managing infection risks, in line with local policies and national standards (e.g., Health and Safety at Work Act, COSHH).
- Award credit for demonstrating an understanding of the chain of infection and how standard infection control precautions (SICPs) and transmission-based precautions interrupt transmission, with specific examples related to maternity care (e.g., post-partum wound care, neonatal handling).
- Award credit for accurately describing the process of risk assessment for infection hazards, including identifying who is at risk (e.g., immunocompromised mothers, premature neonates) and implementing control measures such as isolation, signage, and environmental decontamination.
- Award credit for evidencing correct selection, use, and disposal of PPE (gloves, aprons, masks) in simulation or practical assessment, explaining the rationale for each item in specific maternity contexts (e.g., during perineal suturing, when handling bodily fluids).