This session will be a starting point to foster interactions between trainee and early career microbiologists across the different sectors that the Federation of Infection Societies represents: academic science, clinical, biomedical, nursing and pharmacy trainees. The session will enable knowledge exchange to the mutual benefit of fundamental and applied research in the context of infectious diseases and help attendees to find out about funding opportunities for collaborative research. Refreshments will be available during a networking event at the end of the session.
This session is being organised by the UKCPA - Clinical Pharmacy Association and the British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy
In addressing the antimicrobial resistance challenge, ensuring we have strategies to address antimicrobial prophylaxis as well as treatment is important.
This session will focus on the agents used in antimicrobial prophylaxis, their role in medical and surgical disease areas and the challenges and consequences of inappropriate use. The session will focus on good practice examples together with linking to the new 2019/20 antimicrobial CQUIN.
Tejal Vaghela (Watford General Hospital, UK) and Dr Mark Gilchrist (Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, UK)
This session is organised by the Healthcare Infection Society
The burden of diabetic foot infections (DFI) presents many challenges. Infection relapse is common, often with increasingly resistant organisms. There is no clearly superior strategy to tackle the infective problems. The patients are heterogeneous with varying presentations.
Here we present the evolution of an MDT-driven orthopaedic surgical approach utilising local antibiotic delivery via calcium sulphate cement.
We will discuss the approach developed to sampling, surgery and antibiotic delivery. A large case-series of over 90 patients will be reported on, with outcomes. The wider ‘spin-off’ benefits in terms of infection prevention and control and antimicrobial stewardship, will be explored. From the same centre, we will contrast with a clinician-led approach, using prolonged IV antibiotics largely via OPAT, with the aim of avoiding the need of surgery. As well as case selection for oral antibiotics in osteomyelitis of DFI.
The session will also include expert opinion from the working party on the 2019 infection guidelines produced by the International Working Group on the Diabetic Foot.
David Harvey (Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, UK)
This session is being organised by the British Paediatric Allergy Immunity and Infection Group
Back by popular demand after the success of their sessions in 2017 and 2018, Sanjay and Stephane will be presenting interactive paediatric cases not dissimilar to those that may be encountered by microbiologists and adult ID specialists!
Sanjay Patel (Southampton Children’s Hospital, UK) and Stephane Paulus (Oxford Children’s Hospital and Convenor of BPAIIG, UK)
This session is being organised by the Scottish Microbiology Association
Around 75% of human pathogens have an animal origin. Ecological and evolutionary changes can have significant impacts on zoonotic infections, with many emerging, re-emerging or increasing in importance, and this session will cover a diverse range of some of these. The invited speakers will focus on zoonoses associated with three very different sources – Lyme disease, increasing risks from the handling of raw pet food and organisms encountered following bite-wounds and other zoonotic infections from marine mammals.
Professor Andrew Smith (University of Glasgow, UK) and Geoffrey Foster (SRUC Veterinary Services, UK)
This session is being organised by the British Society for Medical Mycology and will focus on the emerging fungal pathogen Candida auris.
Dr P. Lewis White (University Hospital of Wales, UK, on behalf of the British Society for Medical Mycology)
This session is being organised by the UKCPA - Clinical Pharmacy Association and the British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy
In addressing the antimicrobial resistance challenge, ensuring we have strategies to address antimicrobial prophylaxis as well as treatment is important.
This session will focus on the agents used in antimicrobial prophylaxis, their role in medical and surgical disease areas and the challenges and consequences of inappropriate use. The session will focus on good practice examples together with linking to the new 2019/20 antimicrobial CQUIN.
Tejal Vaghela (Watford General Hospital, UK) and Dr Mark Gilchrist (Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, UK)
This session is organised by the Healthcare Infection Society
The burden of diabetic foot infections (DFI) presents many challenges. Infection relapse is common, often with increasingly resistant organisms. There is no clearly superior strategy to tackle the infective problems. The patients are heterogeneous with varying presentations.
Here we present the evolution of an MDT-driven orthopaedic surgical approach utilising local antibiotic delivery via calcium sulphate cement.
We will discuss the approach developed to sampling, surgery and antibiotic delivery. A large case-series of over 90 patients will be reported on, with outcomes. The wider ‘spin-off’ benefits in terms of infection prevention and control and antimicrobial stewardship, will be explored.
From the same centre, we will contrast with a clinician-led approach, using prolonged IV antibiotics largely via OPAT, with the aim of avoiding the need of surgery. As well as case selection for oral antibiotics in osteomyelitis of DFI.
The session will also include expert opinion from the working party on the 2019 infection guidelines produced by the International Working Group on the Diabetic Foot.
David Harvey (Wirral University Teaching Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, UK)
This session is being organised by the British Paediatric Allergy Immunity and Infection Group
Back by popular demand after the success of their sessions in 2017 and 2018, Sanjay and Stephane will be presenting interactive paediatric cases not dissimilar to those that may be encountered by microbiologists and adult ID specialists!
Sanjay Patel (Southampton Children’s Hospital, UK) and Stephane Paulus (Oxford Children’s Hospital and Convenor of BPAIIG, UK)
This session is being organised by the Scottish Microbiology Association
Around 75% of human pathogens have an animal origin. Ecological and evolutionary changes can have significant impacts on zoonotic infections, with many emerging, re-emerging or increasing in importance, and this session will cover a diverse range of some of these. The invited speakers will focus on zoonoses associated with three very different sources – Lyme disease, increasing risks from the handling of raw pet food and organisms encountered following bite-wounds and other zoonotic infections from marine mammals.
Professor Andrew Smith (University of Glasgow, UK) and Geoffrey Foster (Scottish Microbiological Association, UK)
This session is being organised by the Microbiology Society
The diagnosis and treatment of biofilm infection, particularly in the orthopaedic setting, remains a challenge. Surgical wound contamination from patient’s skin can not only be a cause of biofilm infection but has the potential to confound diagnosis of chronic infection. The current guidelines on the diagnosis and subsequent treatment of implant biofilm infection will be addressed and debated.
Professor Sheila Patrick (Queen’s University Belfast, UK) and Professor Craig Williams (University of the West of Scotland, UK)
CHIVA's achievements and future challenges.
Fiona Shackley (Sheffield Children's NHS Foundation Trust) on behalf of CHIVA committee
This session is being organised by the British Infection Association
This session will develop the theme around neglected tropical diseases. These diseases occur mostly in very resource poor settings. The conditions largely affect the poorest people and therefore go unnoticed and are 'neglected'. There are a number of diseases that are included in this group and this symposium will concentrate on the innovative management of Filarisis,Trachoma and Leprosy.
Hiten Thaker (Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust, UK)
This session is being organised by the UKCPA - Clinical Pharmacy Association and the British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy
This session will explore the antimicrobial stewardship considerations during end of life care and will focus specifically on the approach to decision making, risk and benefits to initiating treatment and a patient perspective.
The session will also help inform the audience and healthcare users around this sometimes challenging situation.
Tejal Vaghela (Watford General Hospital, UK) and Dr Mark Gilchrist (Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, UK)
This session is being organised by the Microbiology Society
The diagnosis and treatment of biofilm infection, particularly in the orthopaedic setting, remains a challenge. Surgical wound contamination from patient’s skin can not only be a cause of biofilm infection but has the potential to confound diagnosis of chronic infection. The current guidelines on the diagnosis and subsequent treatment of implant biofilm infection will be addressed and debated.Professor Sheila Patrick (Queen’s University Belfast, UK) and Professor Craig Williams (University of the West of Scotland, UK)
CHIVA's achievements and future challenges.
Fiona Shackley (Sheffield Children's NHS Foundation Trust) on behalf of CHIVA committee
This session is being organised by the British Infection Association
This session will develop the theme around neglected tropical diseases. These diseases occur mostly in very resource poor settings. The conditions largely affect the poorest people and therefore go unnoticed and are 'neglected'. There are a number of diseases that are included in this group and this symposium will concentrate on the innovative management of Filarisis, Trachoma and Leprosy.
Hiten Thaker (Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust, UK)
This session will present interactive clinical case presentations selected from submitted abstracts. Audience participation will be encouraged by the Chairs who are experienced clinicians.
Dr Hiten Thaker (Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust, UK)
This session is being organised by the Microbiology Society
Humans host thriving microbial communities which have been recognised since the early days of microbiology as a source of potentially lethal opportunistic pathogens and chronic infection. More recent metagenomic and metataxonomic analyses of these microbiotas provide detailed insights into the microbes present and an indication of their relative abundance. These studies have led to a growing list of potential microbiota-health associations, from autoimmune disease to mental health and obesity. In addition, there is a growing interest in faecal microbiota transplant treatment, with considerable success in relation to C. difficile infection. This symposium will address the microbiota in relation to infection and reflect on the evidence for selected microbiota-health associations. Offered papers relating to any aspect of the human microbiota, including faecal microbiota transplant treatment, will be considered for oral presentation within the symposium.
Professor Sheila Patrick (Queen’s University Belfast, UK) and Dr Alan Walker (University of Aberdeen, UK)
This session is being organised by the Healthcare Infection Society
The accessibility of Big Data in healthcare has opened the door to a wide variety of possibilities for infection prevention control and in antimicrobial stewardship. The drive towards digitalisation of a complete electronic patient record by the NHS had brought together previously disparate clinical data that can now be linked using health informatics expertise. Developments in machine learning are promising greater in-depth analysis of large volumes of complicated infection data, unveiling hidden transmission networks and the early detection of hospital outbreaks. Projects at national, regional and hospital level have demonstrated the benefit in engaging with health informatics that will allow clinicians to better understand their local and national epidemiology, to facilitate outbreak detection and addressing increasing problems posed by AMR. During this session national and international experts will discuss the implementation of health informatics projects and how this can be translated in a meaningful way to deliver effective Infection Prevention Control.
Dr Jasmin Islam (Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals, NHS Trust, UK) and Dr Luke Bedford (Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust, UK)
This session is be organised by the National Travel Health Network and Centre
The sessions will cover current epidemiology, UK traveller cases, and factors that health professionals should consider when advising travellers for each disease. For all three diseases, there are unique challenges in terms of risk perception, risk tolerance and communication. In the case of traveller malaria, although almost completely preventable, imported cases remain a concern particularly for UK residents of African or Asian ethnicity who are non-UK born and going to visit family. For Zika, what should we advise pregnant travellers? Zika has now been reported over 80 countries and territories, but surveillance data is limited in many parts of the world. Finally, the recent case of imported rabies in a UK resident following a cat bite highlights the importance of good pre-travel advice, but also effective post exposure management.
Dipti Patel (NaTHNaC, UK) and Dr Nick Beeching (University of Liverpool, UK)
This session is being organised by the British Infection Association and the British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy
Aminoglycosides are a critical antimicrobial option for many infections. However more recently questions are been raised as to what is the most effective dose?
Some studies suggest that the under-dosing of aminoglycosides is a concern however this needs to be balanced against the potential unintended consequences of this group of antimicrobials.
This session will explore the PK/PD of aminoglycoside use and look at the impact of conflicts in current breakpoint recommendations between the BNF and EUCAST.
The invited papers will offer an ‘into clinical practice’ perspective, showing the benefits and pitfalls of aminoglycoside use, both single and combinations therapies.
Hiten Thaker (Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust, UK) and Dr Mark Gilchrist (Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, UK)
In 2016, NICE was commissioned by the Department of Health and Social Care to produce clinical syndrome- specific guidelines for managing common infections, with the aim of guiding appropriate use of antimicrobials and minimising antimicrobial resistance. A standing committee of experts is producing the guidelines and is working closely with Public Health England. The members of the committee will present and discuss the latest guidelines published in 2019.
Dr Mitul Patel (Birmingham Women’s and Children’s NHS Foundation Trust, UK)
This session is being organised by the Microbiology Society
Humans host thriving microbial communities which have been recognised since the early days of microbiology as a source of potentially lethal opportunistic pathogens and chronic infection. More recent metagenomic and metataxonomic analyses of these microbiotas, along with fluorescence microscopy, provide detailed insights into the microbes present and an indication of their relative abundance. These studies have led to a growing list of potential microbiota-health associations, from autoimmune disease to mental health and obesity. This symposium will address the microbiota in relation to infection and reflect on the evidence for selected microbiota-health associations.
Professor Sheila Patrick (Queen’s University Belfast, UK) and Dr Alan Walker (Univeristy of Aberdeen, UK)
This session is being organised by the Healthcare Infection Society
The accessibility of Big Data in healthcare has opened the door to a wide variety of possibilities for infection prevention control and in antimicrobial stewardship. The drive towards digitalisation of a complete electronic patient record by the NHS had brought together previously disparate clinical data that can now be linked using health informatics expertise. Developments in machine learning are promising greater in-depth analysis of large volumes of complicated infection data, unveiling hidden transmission networks and the early detection of hospital outbreaks. Projects at national, regional and hospital level have demonstrated the benefit in engaging with health informatics that will allow clinicians to better understand their local and national epidemiology, to facilitate outbreak detection and addressing increasing problems posed by AMR. During this session national and international experts will discuss the implementation of health informatics projects and how this can be translated in a meaningful way to deliver effective Infection Prevention Control.
Dr Jasmin Islam (Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals, NHS Trust, UK) and Dr Luke Bedford (Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust, UK)
This session is being organised by the British Infection Association and the British Society for Antimicrobial Chemotherapy
Aminoglycosides are a critical antimicrobial option for many infections. However more recently questions are been raised as to what is the most effective dose?
Some studies suggest that the under-dosing of aminoglycosides is a concern however this needs to be balanced against the potential unintended consequences of this group of antimicrobials.
This session will explore the PK/PD of aminoglycoside use and look at the impact of conflicts in current breakpoint recommendations between the BNF and EUCAST.
The invited papers will offer an ‘into clinical practice’ perspective, showing the benefits and pitfalls of aminoglycoside use, both single and combinations therapies.
Hiten Thaker (Hull and East Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust, UK) and Dr Mark Gilchrist (Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, UK)
This session is being co-organised by the Society for Anaerobic Microbiology (SAM), the Microbiology Society and the UK Anaerobe Reference Unit (UKARU).
Anaerobic bacteria are increasingly associated with new disease presentations and processes. This session will give insights into different aspects of C. difficile infection (CDI) from Paediatric CDI to delivering a UK wide Faecal Microbiota Transplantation (FMT) service & the role of FMT in treating multi-drug resistant organisms (MDRO). New approaches to C. difficile surveillance using whole genome sequencing (WGS) will be presented along with anaerobic infections in Intravenous Drug Users (IVDU) and dealing with disseminated anaerobic infections.Professor Sheila Patrick (Queen’s University Belfast, UK), Trefor Morris (Public Health Wales, UK) and Dr Harriet Hughes (Public Health Wales, UK)
Antimicrobial stewardship has been a major initiative in the last decade, to intensify efforts in the control of bacterial resistance. Much attention has been given to which approaches stewardship programmes should include to achieve specific objectives, such as adherence to local guidelines, use of pathogen-directed therapy, discontinuation of therapy when infection is found to be unlikely, timely switching from parenteral to oral treatment, and appropriate duration of therapy. This session will discuss next-step approaches such as behaviour change, using clinical and non-clinical staff (other than microbiologists and pharmacists) and technology to support antimicrobial stewardship programmes.
Rakhee Patel (Darent Valley Hospital, UK) and Tejal Vaghela (Watford General Hospital, UK)
The presentation will outline work to determine risk factors for E.coli in cancer patients and the quality improvement initiatives which followed.
Infection Prevention Society (IPS)
This session is being organised by the Healthcare Infection Society
The accessibility of Big Data in healthcare has opened the door to a wide variety of possibilities for infection prevention control and in antimicrobial stewardship. The drive towards digitalisation of a complete electronic patient record by the NHS had brought together previously disparate clinical data that can now be linked using health informatics expertise. Developments in machine learning are promising greater in-depth analysis of large volumes of complicated infection data, unveiling hidden transmission networks and the early detection of hospital outbreaks. Projects at national, regional and hospital level have demonstrated the benefit in engaging with health informatics that will allow clinicians to better understand their local and national epidemiology, to facilitate outbreak detection and addressing increasing problems posed by AMR. During this session national and international experts will discuss the implementation of health informatics projects and how this can be translated in a meaningful way to deliver effective Infection Prevention Control.
Dr Jasmin Islam (Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals, NHS Trust, UK) and Dr Luke Bedford (Ipswich Hospital NHS Trust, UK)
Part 1 will include three invited speakers: It will include two organism-specific examples (Streptococcus pneumoniae and measles virus) illustrating the challenges of controlling pneumococcal disease and measles elimination. The successes and challenges of delivering these vaccine programmes from a national perspective will be described. The third presentation will address the issue of vaccine hesitancy. Part 2 will include offered presentations selected from submitted abstracts including estimates of the half-Life of maternal transplacental diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis antibodies in infants and how a medical educational initiative can be used to address vaccine hesitancy.
Dr Norman K. Fry (Public Health England, UK) and Dr Sanjay Patel (University Hospital Southampton UK)
This session is being co-organised by the Society for Anaerobic Microbiology (SAM), the Microbiology Society and the UK Anaerobe Reference Unit (UKARU).
Anaerobic bacteria are increasingly associated with new disease presentations and processes. This session will give insights into different aspects of C. difficile infection (CDI) from Paediatric CDI to delivering a UK wide Faecal Microbiota Transplantation (FMT) service & the role of FMT in treating multi-drug resistant organisms (MDRO). New approaches to C. difficile surveillance using whole genome sequencing (WGS) will be presented along with anaerobic infections in Intravenous Drug Users (IVDU) and dealing with disseminated anaerobic infections.Professor Sheila Patrick (Queen’s University Belfast, UK), Trefor Morris (Public Health Wales, UK) and Dr Harriet Hughes (Public Health Wales, UK)
Antimicrobial stewardship has been a major initiative in the last decade, to intensify efforts in the control of bacterial resistance. Much attention has been given to which approaches stewardship programmes should include to achieve specific objectives, such as adherence to local guidelines, use of pathogen-directed therapy, discontinuation of therapy when infection is found to be unlikely, timely switching from parenteral to oral treatment, and appropriate duration of therapy. This session will discuss next-step approaches such as behaviour change, using clinical and non-clinical staff (other than microbiologists and pharmacists) and technology to support antimicrobial stewardship programmes.
Rakhee Patel (Darent Valley Hospital, UK) and Tejal Vaghela (Watford General Hospital, UK)
Part 1 will include three invited speakers: It will include two organism-specific examples (Streptococcus pneumoniae and measles virus) illustrating the challenges of controlling pneumococcal disease and measles elimination. The successes and challenges of delivering these vaccine programmes from a national perspective will be described. The third presentation will address the issue of vaccine hesitancy. Part 2 will include offered presentations selected from submitted abstracts including estimates of the half-Life of maternal transplacental diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis antibodies in infants and how a medical educational initiative can be used to address vaccine hesitancy.
Dr Norman K. Fry (Public Health England, UK) and Dr Sanjay Patel (University Hospital Southampton UK)
In this session trainee researchers will be provided with insights into research publication and the trainee-led National Infection Trainees' Collaborative for Audit and Research (NITCAR) will provide updates on current and upcoming projects. Selected offered oral presentations by early career and trainee researchers will be considered for Microbiology Society Infection Science Awards. This new Microbiology Society initiative is an exchange scheme that facilitates the most promising trainee and early career presenters from FIS to present at the Microbiology Society Annual Conference Infection Forum to improve the exchange of ideas and the career development of early career researchers and trainee scientists and doctors. Awardees will be provided with a bursary to attend and present at the Microbiology Society Annual Conference in Edinburgh 30 March-3 April 2020.
Professor Sheila Patrick (Queen’s University Belfast, UK) and Professor Craig Williams (University of the West of Scotland, UK)
The National Infection Trainees' Collaborative for Audit and Research (NITCAR) is a trainee led organisation which aims to facilitate multi-centre audit, service evaluation or research projects. The ultimate vision is to generate high quality evidence that improves patient care within the field of infection, and throws a spotlight on the potential utility of high-quality audit and service evaluations. Come along to hear about upcoming NITCAR projects!
Shadia Ahmed (NITCAR) and Jordan Skitrall (NITCAR)
Demystifying RCPath exams: Dr Ronan McMullan, Chair of the Royal College of Pathologists’ Medical Microbiology Examinations Committee and Dr Malur Sudhanva, Chair of the Virology Examinations Committee provide an update on these exams, their structure and how to approach them. The panel will be joined by Dr Rob Shorten, Clinical Scientist at Manchester Public Health Laboratory and Dr Alice Wort, Specialty Trainee Medical Microbiologist at the Northern Deanery, who will share their recent experiences of the exams, and join in a Q&A session to share some useful hints and tips for preparation.
Dr Angharad Davies (Swansea University Medical School, UK)