Microbiology

Services Rendered by the department: From January 25 to December 25

Infection Control

Infection Control Activities- The hospital has a comprehensive infection control program for prevention and control of Healthcare Associated Infections & multidrug Resistant Organisms. The infection control committee meets regularly on last Tuesday of every month to discuss any issues, to formulate and update patient care policies, to develop system of identifying, reporting, investigating and controlling the hospital acquired infection, and formulation of preventive and corrective programs in view of infectious hazards. Antimicrobial stewardship: Antimicrobial stewardship forms an important component of daily infection control rounds. Discussion and review of antimicrobial treatment is carried by the infection control officer routinely. Antibiogram is prepared based on susceptibility patterns and temporal trends of aggregated data are analysed and shared. Antibiotic policy is formulated based on in-house antibiogram and globally accepted clinical guidelines. Escalation and de-escalation of antimicrobials is done to optimize the treatment and to prevent the emergence of MDROs(multiple drug resistant organisms). The infection control manual and antibiotic policy is available on HIS (hospital information system) and can be readily accessed for referral in all areas. Restricted antimicrobials are administered only after due consideration and clearance from the concerned Faculty and infection control officer their usage monitored, quantified and rationale documented.

Faecal Microbiota transplant (FMT) laboratory

Interest in the therapeutic potential of faecal microbiota transplant (FMT) has been increasing globally in recent years. FMT is an innovative investigational treatment during which a faecal preparation from a carefully screened, healthy stool donor is transplanted into the colon of the patient. Though the main focus has been the treatment of recurrent or refractory Clostridium difficile infection (CDI), there is also an emerging evidence base regarding potential applications in non-CDI settings. Reflecting the breadth of the field itself the Department of Microbiology has bought together a state of the art FMT laboratory, the first of its kind in the country, to bring together a multi disciplinary unit for screening, treatment and scope for future research in the fields involving the gut microbiome.

New services & facilities added to the department in 2025

Film array Nested Multiplex Real time PCR:

This revolutionary breakthrough integrates sample preparation, nucleic acid extraction and purification, amplification, detection and analysis into one simple system that requires 2 minutes of hands-on time, with a total run time of about one hour. The department of clinical microbiology and Infection control has seen the addition of 2 new multiplex PCR panels in the year 2020 the gist of these panels have been mentioned below.

Pneumonia Multiplex Real time PCR panel:

The Pneumonia Panel tests specimens from the lower respiratory tract (sputum, endotracheal aspirate, and bronchoalveolar lavage) and detects 18 bacteria (11 Gram negative, 4 Gram positive and 3 atypical) and 7 antibiotic resistance markers of organisms that cause pneumonia and other lower respiratory tract infections. Also a semi quantitative analysis of the load of nucleic acid targets is provided.

GI panel:

The concept of syndromic testing approach of GI Panel eliminates limitations from conventional methods by providing, faster, more accurate and comprehensive results. The GI panel detects 17 bacterial and parasitic pathogens that are commonly associated with gastroenteritis directly from stool samples.

Antimicrobial resistance Surveillance: WINSAR D

The department of Clinical Microbiology and Infection control is a part of the 21 centre WINSAR-D: WHO-IAMM network for surveillance of antimicrobial resistance network across Delhi National Capital region. Monthly data of the antimicrobial resistance of various isolates is collected and analysed on the WHONET software.

Educational Activities

Details of the Educational activities hosted by the department in 2025:

• 1. Pre-conference Hands-on Workshop on MALDI-TOF for Fungal Infections during MICROCON 2025
• 2. Pre-conference Workshop on FMT
• 3. Hosted 'Hand Hygiene day'
• 4. Workshop on Safe injection practices and care for intra vascular devices for the nursing staff
• 5. Induction classes for DM/MCH/PDCC candidates on infection control practices and Bio medical waste management
• 6. Conducted classes on Bio medical waste management- importance of segregation to disposal for NIHFW training of trainers

Departmental Achievements

Awards:

• 1. Dr Pratibha Kale received the ICMR-DHR Travel Grant for attending the TIMM, Bilbao, Spain.
• 2. Dr Pratibha Kale received the Institute Appreciation Award 2025, at Institute Foundation Day 2025.
• 3. Dr Venkat Goutham received First prize in IATP National Parasitology Quiz Competition at Guwahati
• 4. Dr Arundhati Paul received First prize in IATP National Parasitology Quiz Competition at Guwahati
• 5. Dr Venkat Goutham received Poster of excellence award in ILBS Research Day
• 6. Dr Arundhati Paul received Poster of excellence award in ILBS Research Day

Visiting faculty to the department in 2025