About
The Provincial Infection Control Network of British Columbia (PICNet) is a provincial health improvement network (HIN) of the Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA) that works to reduce health-care-associated infections in BC health-care facilities.
Our key areas of focus are surveillance, evidence-informed guidelines, and education. PICNet works together with partners on provincial surveillance initiatives, development and promotion of infection prevention and control best practices, and the creation of educational and operational tools.
Our community of practice includes experts in infection prevention and control, occupational health and safety, public health, infectious diseases, patient safety and quality, microbiology laboratories, and others.
WHAT PICNET CAN DO FOR YOU
As a network, PICNet works closely with the infection prevention and control Community of Practice. This includes taking requests for consultations, projects, and resources. Following are some ways that PICNet can help you:
- Develop new guidelines or manuals
- For example, the Residential Care Manual was developed following a request from the Community of Practice
- Review guidelines or policies you have developed from an infection prevention and control perspective
- Help you develop education modules or tools, or provide input on materials you have developed
- Put you in touch with experts in the field of infection prevention and control
- Direct you to the information you need (e.g. existing guidelines or standards, expert groups)
- Help you find infection control courses
- Provide consultation on infection prevention & control
- Provide education sessions tailored to your needs
For any of the above, feel free to email us to find out how to proceed.
VISION, PURPOSE AND VALUES
VISION
System wide solutions for fewer infections
PURPOSE
Our purpose is to reduce health-care-associated infections by improving infection prevention control practices across the continuum of health care in British Columbia. We do this by building strong partnerships with the infection prevention and control Community of Practice, providing leadership in developing evidence-informed processes and practices, supporting excellence through sound knowledge sharing and influencing provincial policy decisions.
VALUES
We embrace the following values:
- Widespread sharing of knowledge
- Compassion and respect for the Community of Practice and those we serve
- Excellent, evidence-informed, patient-centered practice
- Cultivation of trust in partnerships by collaboration and consensus building
- Continual improvement and lifelong learning
PICNet Team
- Explore Our Team Members
- Reporting structure details will be available soon.
KEY PARTNERS/COMMUNITY OF PRACTICE
With support and guidance from our infection prevention and control partners in the health authorities across British Columbia, PICNet brings together health care professionals with an interest in infection control from across the continuum of care and across the province, including:
- Epidemiologists
- Infection Control Professionals
- Infectious Disease Physicians
- Medical Microbiologists
- Directors of Care
- Medical Health Officers
- Public Health Nurses
- Environmental Health Officers
- Occupational Health Nurses
- Occupational Health Physicians
- Other health-care providers
PROVIDING LEADERSHIP AND GUIDANCE
The overarching strategic objective for PICNet is to optimize sustainable capacity within the infection control community of practice. This means ensuring the best possible results are achieved within the available resources. This is achieved by PICNet:
- Providing advice on relevant policies and issues
- Providing knowledge to guide investigation and/or practice
- Supporting and coordinating initiatives that pull common interests together
- Sharing information
- Advocating on behalf of the community of practice for appropriate and sustainable resources
- Assisting and participating in surveillance activities