CDC’s Project Firstline seeks partners to expand infection-prevention training for frontline allied health workers

Project Firstline, presented on the CDC webinar, is CDC’s national infection prevention and control training and education collaborative for frontline healthcare workers. Amy Colwaite, Chief of the Health System Strengthening and Resilience Branch, said the program prioritizes accessible, practical and culturally appropriate IPC resources targeting allied health roles and historically under-resourced settings.

The webinar listed specific priorities: role-specific, low-burden training methods; culturally co-created resources; rapid onboarding and competency checklists; train-the-trainer models to address turnover; multimedia instructional design such as short animations and interactive scenarios; and evaluation measures that link training to practice change and, where feasible, patient-safety outcomes.

Why it matters: Many frontline allied health roles have high turnover and limited access to tailored IPC curricula. CDC asked applicants to demonstrate experience delivering competency-based training, partnering with healthcare settings and community colleges, and using mixed-methods evaluation to drive continuous quality improvement.

Application pointers from Q&A: During the Q&A panelists confirmed that attachments (table of contents, resumes, org chart, partner lists, capability letters and data management plans) should be combined into a single "other attachments" PDF for submission; SF424-family forms remain separate. The panel also confirmed the project narrative page limit is 20 pages and there will be no extension to the July 1, 2026 application deadline.

Next steps: Applicants seeking to address IPC training priorities should describe how they will reach frontline cadres, propose evaluation metrics disaggregated by workforce role, and present plans for national dissemination via established platforms.