<P> Infection control addresses factors related to the spread of infections within the healthcare setting (whether patient - to - patient, from patients to staff and from staff to patients, or among - staff), including prevention (via hand hygiene / hand washing, cleaning / disinfection / sterilization, vaccination, surveillance), monitoring / investigation of demonstrated or suspected spread of infection within a particular health - care setting (surveillance and outbreak investigation), and management (interruption of outbreaks). It is on this basis that the common title being adopted within health care is "infection prevention and control ." </P> <P> Aseptic technique is a key component of all invasive medical procedures . Similarly, infection control measures are most effective when Standard Precautions (health care) are applied because undiagnosed infection is common . </P> <P> Independent studies by Ignaz Semmelweis in 1846 in Vienna and Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. in 1843 in Boston established a link between the hands of health care workers and the spread of hospital - acquired disease . The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) state that "It is well documented that the most important measure for preventing the spread of pathogens is effective handwashing ." In the developed world, hand washing is mandatory in most health care settings and required by many different regulators . </P> <P> In the United States, OSHA standards require that employers must provide readily accessible hand washing facilities, and must ensure that employees wash hands and any other skin with soap and water or flush mucous membranes with water as soon as feasible after contact with blood or other potentially infectious materials (OPIM). </P>

What is the most important aspect of all infection control procedures