Variation in administrators' and clinicians' attitudes toward critical elements of an infection control program and the role of the infection controlpractitioner in New South Wales, Australia

Background: Debate remains over the core activities of infection control (I C) programs. Differences in stakeholder opinions must be considered if cons ensus panel guidelines and recommendations are to be broadly applied. This article describes a survey of administrators and clinicians employed in hos pitals in New South Wales, Australia. Respondents self-reported their level s of agreement with affirmative statements regarding the role of the infect ion control practitioner (ICP) and the essential requirements and infrastru cture of IC programs. Method: The study population included administrators and clinicians in each public, private, and freestanding day hospital in New South Wales. Respond ents reported the intensity of their agreement with 16 affirmative statemen ts relating to IC program infrastructure and resources and the ICP's role a nd responsibilities. Results: The overall response rate was 62.1% (587/945). Clinicians (349/587 ) and administrators (238/587) accounted for 59.5% and 40.5% of the respons e rate, respectively. Overall, administrators and clinicians reported great est levels of agreement for those elements not requiring additional resourc es. Conclusion: The extent of divergence between administrators and clinicians is not so great that it can not be resolved. Our findings demonstrate the d egree of administrator support that clinicians can expect for each element. We advocate better Communication between clinicians and administrators in conjunction with objective strategic planning. Our findings provide a guide for ICPs to either establish or negotiate the core components of their IC program.