The Infection prevention and control in the context of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19): a living guideline consolidates technical guidance developed and published during the COVID-19 pandemic into evidence-informed recommendations for infection prevention and control (IPC). This living guideline is available both online and PDF.

This version of the living guideline (version 6.0) includes fifteen statements on IPC measures in health-care settings (screening and patient placement, ventilation, physical barriers, environmental cleaning, waste management, amongst others) as well as one statement on mask fit in the community context.

Understanding the updated section

The update to this guideline considers the transition from critical emergency-response activities to longer-term, sustained COVID-19 disease prevention, control and management, and a shift towards integration of IPC activities into routine systems and practices. This includes a return to standard and transmission-based precautions in health-care settings, and the adoption of public health practices for community settings. Updated recommendations for health-care facilities include a focus on the hierarchy of control measures, source control, standard and transmission-based precautions. The prevention of health care-associated infections involves a multi-pronged and multi-factorial approach that includes infection prevention and control and occupational health and safety measures.

V6.0. Updated sections: Part 1: Health-care settings: 1) IPC principles, 2) IPC measures for patients with suspected or confirmed COVID-19, 3) Water, sanitation, hygiene and waste management, and 4) Safe dead body management. Part 2: Community Settings: Mask use (one good practice statement).