The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has announced a $180 million program designed to help stop the spread of pathogens in healthcare facilities and protect frontline healthcare workers, according to an article on the Infection Control Today website.

“Project Firstline,” will help to train healthcare facility staff how to protect workers on the frontlines battling pathogens such as coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

“Project Firstline is a CDC-led collaborative intended for the millions of frontline U.S. healthcare workers,” according to a CDC press release. “It offers short training modules, townhall discussions, and tele-mentoring to ensure all workers in healthcare—from doctors to environmental services staff—are empowered with knowledge about the science and reasoning behind today’s infection control practices. Trainings will consist of concise, interactive and mobile device-friendly video segments, designed for busy frontline healthcare workers to access during breaks at work or during off hours.”

Project Firstline will be a collaborative effort involving more than a dozen healthcare, public health, and academic institutions, according to the CDC. Sixty-four state, territorial, and local health departments through the Epidemiology and Laboratory Capacity cooperative agreement to support development and dissemination of Project Firstline.

Read the full Infection Control Today article.