Training needs of infection control professionals in long-term care facilities in Virginia.
BACKGROUND
Infection control professionals from area long-term care facilities contacted us and asked for help in securing infection control training. To determine whether there was sufficient statewide need to warrant University activity, we conducted a needs assessment.


METHODS
An eight-page questionnaire was mailed to 220 infection control professionals in nursing homes statewide. The instrument focused on training needs and also on training accessibility issues. Ninety-nine completed questionnaires were returned for a 41% response rate.


RESULTS
The infection control professionals who responded came from a representative group of long-term care facilities throughout the state. Ninety-three percent indicated that they were "very interested" or "interested" in a series of sessions addressing a wide variety of long-term care infection control topics. Ninety-nine percent of the respondents indicated that it was "extremely important" or "important" for any such training to focus specifically on long-term care facilities.


CONCLUSIONS
Considerable need for infection control training was expressed by infection control professionals in Virginia long-term care facilities. Such training must be relevant to long-term care facilities and should meet accessibility requirements.
Leinbach
R M
RM
School of Community Health Professions and Physical Therapy, College of Health Sciences, Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA 23529, USA.
English
A J
AJ
D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D003479:Curriculum; D006801:Humans; D016357:Infection Control Practitioners / Q000193:education* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D007318:Inservice Training / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008134:Long-Term Care; D009735:Nursing Homes; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014768:Virginia; D000078329:Workforce