Hand Washing and Infection Control Flashcards
What is infection control?
The policies and procedures implemented by an organisation to combat the spread of infection among staff and patients
What is a nosocomial infection?
An infection contracted by a patient or staff member while in a hospital or health care facility (and not present or incubating on admission)
Who’s responsibility is infection prevention?
Everybody
Give three infection control precautions
Any three of:
1) patient placement/ assessment for infection risk
2) hand hygiene
3) respiratory and cough hygiene
4) personal protective equipment (PPE)
5) safe management of care equipment
6) safe management of the care environment
7) safe management of linen
8) safe management of blood and body fluids
9) safe disposal of waste (including sharps)
10) occupational safety/managing prevention of exposure (including sharps).
What does PPE stand for? Give three examples of PPE equipment
PPE = Personal Protective Equipment
Any three of: Gloves, masks, goggles, aprons, shoe covers
What are the routes of transmission?
Inanimate objects - equipment Airborne - Dust particles Droplets – coughing, sneezing Direct/indirect contact – touch Ingestion – food/fluid Vector – insects/rodents
Arms should be bare below the what?
Elbows
Name the indications for undertaking handwashing (8 points)
Prior to and after direct contact with a woman or baby (skin or body fluids)
Before administering medication.
When making beds or handling equipment
When hands look or feel dirty (visibly soiled)
Before and after eating or preparing food for others
After using the toilet
After removing gloves
Prior to aseptic technique.
There are 11 steps in handwashing, what are they?
- Wet your hands
- Apply hospital grade cleanser
- Rub palms together
- Wash the top of your hands using your palms and in between the top your fingers
- Place your hands palm to palm and interlace your fingers to wash in between
- Rub backs of fingers into opposite palm. Change hands and repeat.
- Wash thumbs
- Wash fingertips and fingernails
- Rinse
- Dry hands thoroughly
- Turn tap off using towel or elbow
When can alcohol based handrubs be used?
When hands are visibly clean
What is the difference between infection and contamination?
Contamination occurs when micro-organisms are present on a surface, infection occurs when a sufficient number of micro–organisms reach a susceptible site, multiply and cause harm to the host.
How should you deal with a bodily fluid spillage?
Use a spillage kit if available
Cordon off the area and deal with the spillage as soon as possible
Use PPE equipment
Follow the correct cleaning procedure according to your organisation’s policy
Ensure that all waste generated is clinical waste; this kind of waste should be discarded as infective waste stream
Name the bodily fluids.
Blood, faeces, vomit, urine and pus, all of which may contain disease-causing micro-organisms.
What are some latrogenic risk factors?
(caused by medical treatment)
Pathogens on hands of medical personnel, invasive procedures (IV cannulae, urinary catheters, intubation) antibiotic use and prophylaxis.
What are some organisational risk factors?
Contaminated air-con, water systems, nurse-patient ratio, open beds close together, bed occupancy.
