Shahbaz Salehi, MD, MPH, MSHIA

Infection Control Today®(ICT®) proudly announces Shahbaz Salehi, MD, MPH, MSHIA, as the 2024 Infection Control Today Educator of the YearTM. This prestigious honor recognizes and celebrates his extraordinary contributions to infection prevention, education, and mentorship. With more than 20 years of experience, Salehi’s journey from a sterile processing (instrument) technician to a visionary leader in infection control demonstrates his passion for advancing health care education and fostering the next generation of infection preventionists.

Salehi has significantly contributed to infection education by teaching the course Infection Control in a Hospital Setting at UCLA Extension, which offers one of the few infection control certificate programs in the US. He also serves as a university subject matter expert, reviewing public health courses and evaluating their sepsis training. Additionally, he reviews and analyzes certification and exam questions for the Healthcare Sterile Processing Association, the leading medical and surgical sterile processing organization.

Salehi’s impact began in 2016 when Prime Healthcare, in Ontario, California, recruited him to develop and expand its infection control program. Under his leadership, the infection prevention infrastructure grew to include more than 60 professionals across 44 hospitals. His mentorship programs brought individuals from diverse health care backgrounds—nursing, laboratory sciences, and physical therapy—into the specialized field of infection prevention and control (IPC). He created a sustainable pipeline of infection preventionists capable of driving change by providing targeted training and guidance.

In 2017, Salehi demonstrated his dedication to underserved communities when he moved to South Texas to establish the infection control department at Doctors Hospital at Renaissance Health System in Edinburg. There, he mentored health care professionals such as Leticia Peña, a laboratory technician who transitioned into infection control and ultimately became the director of the infection control program. This legacy of mentorship reflects his ability to empower others and create lasting change.

Salehi’s leadership consistently delivers quantifiable results. Under his direction, his current hospital achieved zero central line–associated bloodstream infections and zero catheter-associated urinary tract infections for 4 consecutive years while maintaining one of the nation’s lowest Clostridioides difficile infection rates. His success in increasing influenza vaccination rates led to recognition from the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health in 2019 and 2021.

As a dedicated educator, Salehi codeveloped the infection control and prevention certificate program at UCLA Extension, which addresses the growing demand for qualified infection preventionists. “Since 2020, I've been mentoring many students at different universities, and I love teaching and working with them,” Salehi said. “I had the privilege of being part of the team at UCLA Extension that started our inaugural infection control certificate program last year. We had our first cohort of 11 students who graduated with a certificate in infection control, and I am happy to say that most of them were able to find job placement in the field.”

In recognition of his contributions, Salehi was awarded the 2024 Outstanding Recent Alumni Award from Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health. His dedication to mentoring, measurable results in infection control, and innovative educational programs have left a profound and lasting impact on health care systems and future professionals.