Legionnaires’ Disease and Water Hygiene Awareness
Level:
CPD
Duration:
3 hrs
Course code:
TD/2025/09043
Max group:
12
Learn to prevent Legionnaires' disease and maintain safe water hygiene in healthcare settings
Course Summary
Legionnaires’ Disease and Water Hygiene Awareness
This course is designed for healthcare professionals to raise awareness about Legionnaires' disease, its causes, and prevention methods. Participants will learn about the risks associated with water systems, how Legionella bacteria thrive in certain conditions, and the key steps required to maintain safe water hygiene in healthcare settings. The course covers water system maintenance, risk assessments, monitoring, and control measures to prevent outbreaks of Legionnaires' disease. By the end of the course, attendees will be equipped with the knowledge to ensure safe water hygiene and protect patients, staff, and visitors from Legionella-related risks. Key Learning Objectives: Understand Legionnaires' Disease: Learn about the causes, symptoms, and risk factors of Legionnaires' disease. Recognise how Legionella bacteria grow and spread in water systems. Identify the Risks in Water Systems: Understand the environmental conditions that promote Legionella growth (e.g., temperature, stagnation). Identify areas in healthcare settings where Legionella can proliferate (e.g., cooling towers, hot tubs, water tanks). Water Hygiene and Infection Control Principles: Learn the principles of water hygiene to prevent bacterial growth and contamination. Understand the importance of regular cleaning, disinfection, and maintenance of water systems. Risk Assessments and Monitoring: Conduct risk assessments to identify potential Legionella risks in water systems. Learn monitoring techniques and how to measure water temperature, pH levels, and bacterial counts. Implementing Control Measures: Understand and apply control measures such as temperature regulation, biocide treatments, and system flushing. Develop a plan to manage and prevent the growth of Legionella bacteria in water systems. Responding to Outbreaks: Recognise the steps to take if Legionnaires' disease is suspected or confirmed. Understand infection control procedures and reporting protocols during an outbreak. Legal and Regulatory Requirements: Learn about relevant health and safety regulations regarding water hygiene (e.g., HSE guidelines). Understand the legal responsibilities of healthcare providers in preventing Legionella outbreaks. Promote Awareness and Staff Training: Educate staff about Legionnaires' disease and the importance of water hygiene. Encourage a culture of compliance with water hygiene protocols across all healthcare areas. By the end of this course, participants will have the knowledge and tools to manage water hygiene effectively, reduce the risk of Legionnaires' disease, and ensure a safe and compliant healthcare environment.
Course Contents
Introduction to Legionnaires' Disease
Overview of Legionnaires' disease: causes, symptoms, and at-risk populations
Understanding the link between water systems and Legionella bacteria
Global and local prevalence of Legionnaires' disease in healthcare settings
Legionella Bacteria and Its Growth
Conditions Biology of Legionella bacteria and how it causes infection
Environmental conditions that promote the growth of Legionella (e.g., temperature, stagnation, biofilm formation)
Common sources of Legionella outbreaks in healthcare settings (e.g., water tanks, cooling towers, showers, taps)
Legionnaires' Disease Transmission and Symptoms
How Legionella bacteria spread through inhalation of contaminated water droplets
Symptoms of Legionnaires' disease and how it differs from other respiratory illnesses Incubation period, diagnosis, and complications associated with the disease
Water Hygiene Principles and Infection Control Importance of water hygiene in healthcare environments to prevent Legionnaires' disease
Basic infection control practices related to water systems
Temperature control, chlorination, and other prevention methods to maintain water hygiene
Risk Assessment for Legionella in Healthcare Settings
Conducting a Legionella risk assessment in water systems
Identifying high-risk areas for Legionella growth (e.g., stagnant water, poorly maintained systems)
Key factors to consider during a risk assessment (e.g., water temperatures, flow rates, building design)
Control and Prevention Measures
Maintaining water temperatures to prevent Legionella growth (e.g., maintaining hot water above 60°C and cold below 20°C)
Cleaning, disinfection, and regular maintenance of water systems
Flushing and draining practices for high-risk areas (e.g., rarely used taps and showers)
Use of biocides and other chemicals in water treatment
Monitoring and Testing for Legionella
Procedures for regular monitoring of water systems (temperature, pH levels, bacteria counts)
Testing water samples for Legionella contamination
Ensuring compliance with national and international Legionella standards and regulations
Responding to Suspected and Confirmed Cases of Legionnaires' Disease
Steps to take when Legionnaires' disease is suspected in patients or staff Infection control measures to implement immediately upon suspicion or confirmation of an outbreak Reporting protocols for suspected outbreaks to health authorities and regulatory bodies
Legal and Regulatory Framework
Relevant legislation and guidelines for Legionella control in healthcare settings (e.g., Health and Safety Executive [HSE] guidelines, local regulations)
Legal responsibilities of healthcare providers to manage and control Legionella risks
Penalties for non-compliance with water hygiene regulations
Educating Staff and Promoting a Culture of Safety Training staff on the risks of Legionnaires' disease and the importance of water hygiene
Developing water hygiene policies and procedures in healthcare facilities Encouraging staff to follow established protocols and report concerns promptly
Case Studies and Best Practices Review of real-world case studies and outbreaks of Legionnaires' disease Identifying key learnings from past outbreaks and applying best practices to prevent recurrence
Group discussions on how to improve water hygiene practices in healthcare settings
Summary and Next Steps Recap of key course concepts and preventative strategies
Assessment
The instructor conducts a single written assessments at the end of the course. Upon successful completion, learners will receive a three-year Level 3 Award in Principles of Safeguarding and Protecting Children, Young People or Vulnerable Adults (Level 6 in Scotland). No external assessors are required for this qualification.
Duration
The course requires a minimum of 7 hours, distributed over the day. While it is ideal to complete the course in one day, we can adjust the schedule to suit your specific needs, as long as the course is completed within 3 weeks of starting and each training session lasts at least two hours.
Certification Validity
This qualification has no formal expiry, however regular CPD and updates are recommended.
Further Information - Course Numbers
A maximum of 12 students can be accommodated on this course and all candidates must be a minimum of 18 years of age to qualify.
Assessment method: Activities, test paper.
Pre-requisite: None
Suggested progression:
recommended refresher training and CPD;