Gamifying Infection Prevention: An Escape Room Approach for Ambulatory Leaders

Session Description: As healthcare systems expand, infection preventionists increasingly oversee diverse ambulatory care settings, each with its own risks, workflows, and patient populations. Engaging staff across these environments—ranging from ambulatory surgery centers to physical therapy and radiology units—requires creative, relevant educational methods. This 30-minute session explores how infection preventionists can build staff competency through gamified, specialty-specific education.
To address this, our IP team implemented an escape room–style training to reinforce key infection prevention strategies. Using a renovated bio-skills lab, we developed three interactive scenarios tailored to ambulatory workflows and challenges. In Compliance Calamity, participants navigated hand hygiene protocols and environmental compliance standards. In Operation: Escape the Operating Room, teams used black lights to identify missed high-touch surface cleaning and demonstrated appropriate point-of-use instrument care. The final room, Sign It Right, focused on recognizing measles symptoms, matching pathogens to isolation precautions, and sorting waste into correct disposal streams.
The escape room format allowed staff to problem-solve collaboratively while applying knowledge in realistic, high-engagement scenarios. Participants will gain insights into logistical planning, scenario development, and cross team collaboration, with practical takeaways to replicate or adapt the escape room model within their own organizations. Feedback indicated improved understanding of core infection prevention practices and strong support for using gamification in future training initiatives.
This session will demonstrate how a targeted, interactive format can help ambulatory leaders build infection prevention competency while promoting knowledge retention, critical thinking, and staff engagement. Gamified education offers a scalable, adaptable model for training across a wide range of healthcare settings.

Lauren Everett

Infection Preventionist Hybrid practitioner, Morristown Medical Center

Lauren Everett MSN RN CIC began her career in an acute care facility specializing in ventilator weaning, pulmonary conditions, and complex wound care. In 2015, Lauren began working at Morristown Medical Center on the Pulmonary step-down unit. In 2022, Lauren began working in the infection prevention department as part of the newly established hybrid IP team overseeing several inpatient departments as well as over 80 outpatient areas varying in a wide range of specialties including radiology, ambulatory surgery, and gastroenterology. This year Lauren completed her Master of Nursing in executive leadership through Walden University and attained her certification in infection control. Lauren hopes to continue to grow in her role as a hybrid Infection Preventionist to serve the diverse needs of the outpatient population.

Maureen Lansing

Infection Preventionist, Dartmouth College, The Dartmouth Institute Public Health graduate student

Formerly a pediatric nurse at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, I realized to change more lives I needed to move into an Infection Prevention position. My sister, also a nurse and an infection preventionist, encouraged me to pursue the role and I have never looked back. Tracking trends and patterns, implementing best practices, and using positive reinforcement and other communication tools are a part of my every day and how I make infection prevention improvements. Pulling in the front line staff is imperative. Without their coordination and feedback, change will not happen. Personal and professional storytelling helps the staff visualize and empathize with the tasks I propose. Explaining the why is critical. I think outside the box and bring creativity to the world of infection prevention. I am currently a Public Health graduate student at Dartmouth and the 2019 President-Elect for DC Metro APIC Chapter 16.