Dear Colleagues,
Thank you to all the SHEA members who joined us at the SHEA Spring 2025 Conference in Orlando! It was fantastic to connect with so many of you. For those who registered for the event, the conference recordings will be accessible through October 27, 2025, for continuing educational credit. I’d like to extend my gratitude to the incredible speakers, moderators, training course chairs, and program committee members who dedicated their time and expertise to creating a successful event. Special thanks to Mike Stevens, MD, MPH Program Committee Chair, and Ibukun Kalu, MD, Program Committee Vice Chair, for their exceptional leadership.
Next on the calendar is IDWeek 2025, held in partnership with IDSA, PIDS, HIVMA, and SIDP. This year, the conference will take place from October 15–19, 2025, in Atlanta, Georgia. Registration has just opened, and we encourage all SHEA members to join us in continuing the advancement of the infection prevention and antimicrobial stewardship fields. Again this year, we will be hosting three pre-conference workshops of specific interest to SHEA Members: Best Practices for Antibiotic Stewardship Programs, Diagnostic Stewardship: Achieving Excellence in Infectious Disease Diagnostics, and Expanding your Influence to Improve Antibiotic Use in Outpatient Settings. To learn more, visit www.IDWeek.org, and be sure to mark your calendars to ensure you don’t miss this pivotal event.
SHEA is also working closely with APIC to advocate for the reinstatement of CDC’s Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee (HICPAC). We are concerned that CDC’s decision to terminate HICPAC creates a preventable gap in national preparedness and response capacity, leaving healthcare facilities without evidence-based and expert-driven recommendations while threats of emerging pathogens and antimicrobial resistance are on the rise. We are working to raise awareness and concern that disbanding HICPAC jeopardizes decades of progress in preventing the spread of infections in places where healthcare is delivered. More to come on how you can become involved in reaching out to your Congressional representatives on this issue. CDC also plans to meet with the new CDC Director once confirmed as part of our advocacy efforts.
I also want to highlight the Multisociety guidance for sterilization and high-level disinfection recently released to help healthcare facilities reduce infection transmission by improving sterilization and high-level disinfection (HLD) practices for reusable medical devices. Despite their critical role in patient care, these devices can pose infection risks—especially when cleaning protocols are not strictly followed or hindered by unclear instructions and resource limitations. The Multisociety Guidance offers evidence-based, practical recommendations developed by experts to address these challenges and enhance patient safety. It also suggests additional risk-reduction strategies, such as favoring sterilization when feasible, using single-use components, and reassessing device choices based on a facility’s capacity.
If you have any questions, please reach out to our general inbox – info@shea-online.org which will be routed to either myself or the appropriate SHEA staff member.
Sincerely,
David J. Weber, MD, MPH, FIDSA, FSHEA, FRSM