Making the Business Case for Infection Prevention

One of the most critical skills an infection preventionist can have is the ability to construct a solid business case for infection prevention and control at his or her healthcare institution, especially in the age of dwindling resources and funding. Although the task may appear to be intimidating, at the core of this endeavor are several simple steps: use a healthcare-associated infection (HAI ) cost calculator tool to estimate the cost of infections in your facility; interpret the results of statistical models; build a customized business case and effectively present it to healthcare administrative leadership; create a compelling proposal to increase resources for infection prevention and control; and finally market these accomplishments and demonstrate value to all stakeholders.