Infection Control, Documentation and Informatics: Week 3

Question 1

Coughing etiquette

Answer 1

Covering mouth and nose when coughing and sneezing– teaching staff, patients, and families through posters and written material is crucial

Question 2

Communicable Disease

Answer 2

Any kind of infectious disease that can be transmitted directly from one person to another

Question 3

Colonization

Answer 3

The presence and growth of microorganisms within a host but without tissue invasion or damage

Question 4

Hand Hygiene

Answer 4

General term that applies to four techniques: handwashing, antiseptic hand wash, antiseptic hand rub, or surgical hand antisepsis
For the purpose of this course– we will focus on hand washing

Question 5

Healthcare-associated infection

Answer 5

Infections resulting from the delivery of health services in a health care agency, most common in hospitals and long-term care facilities.

Question 6

Iatrogenic infections

Answer 6

Type of healthcare-associated infection caused by invasive diagnostic or therapeutic procedures.

Question 7

Immunocompromised

Answer 7

Person with an impaired immune system– puts them at a higher likelihood for all types of infections

Question 8

Multidrug-resistant organism

Answer 8

Type of healthcare associated infection, usually as a result of invasive procedures, antibiotic administration. These types of infections are resistant to multiple types of antibiotics.

Question 9

Reservoir

Answer 9

Place where microorganisms survive, multiply, and await transfer to a susceptible host

Question 10

Pathogens

Answer 10

Microorganisms capable of producing disease

Question 11

Standard Precautions

Answer 11

Designed to be used for the care of all patients, in all settings, regardless of risk or presumed infection status. Standard Precautions are the primary strategies (including barrier precautions) for prevention of infection transmission and apply to contact with blood, body fluids, nonintact skin, mucous membranes, and equipment or surfaces contaminated with potentially infectious materials.

Question 12

Transmissions Based Precautions

Answer 12

Precautions based on the mode of transmission of a disease

Question 13

Airborne Precautions

Answer 13

Focus on diseases that are transmitted by smaller droplets, which remain in the air for longer periods of time. Airborne Precautions require a specially equipped room with a negative airflow referred to as an airborne infection isolation room. Air is not returned to the inside ventilation system but is filtered through a high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter and exhausted directly to the outside. For example, all health care personnel wear an N95 respirator every time they enter the room of a patient with TB.

Question 14

Droplet Precautions

Answer 14

Focus on diseases that are transmitted by large droplets (greater than 5 microns) expelled into the air and by being within 3 feet of a patient. Droplet Precautions require the wearing of a surgical mask when within 3 feet of the patient, proper hand hygiene, and some dedicated-care equipment. An example is a patient with influenza.

Question 15

Contact Precautions

Answer 15

Used for direct and indirect contact with patients and their environment. Direct contact refers to the care and handling of contaminated body fluids. Contact Precautions require a gown and gloves. An example includes blood or other body fluids from an infected patient that enter the health care worker’s body through direct contact with compromised skin or mucous membranes. Indirect contact involves the transfer of an infectious agent through a contaminated intermediate object such as contaminated instruments or hands of health care workers. The health care worker may transmit microorganisms from one patient site to another if hand hygiene is not performed between patients

Question 16

Protective Environment

Answer 16

Focuses on a very limited patient population, all of whom are highly susceptible to infection. This form of isolation requires a specialized room with positive airflow. The airflow rate is set at greater than 12 air exchanges per hour, and all air is filtered through a HEPA filter. One example of a patient requiring a protective environment is a patient who received a kidney transplant. The patient wears a mask when out of his or her room during transportation to x-ray.

Question 17

Personal Protective Equipment

Answer 17

Clothing and equipment that is worn or used in order to provide protection against hazardous substances or environments.

Question 18

N-95/Respirator Mask

Answer 18

Respiratory protective device designed to achieve a very close facial fit and very efficient filtration of airborne particles. Filters

Question 19

Accreditation

Answer 19

Process whereby a professional association or nongovernmental agency grants recognition to a school or institution for demonstrated ability to meet predetermined criteria.

Question 20

Charting by exception

Answer 20

Charting methodology in which data are entered only when there is an exception from that which is normal or expected; reduces time spent documenting in charting. It is a shorthand method for documenting normal findings and routine care.

Question 21

Clinical practice guidelines [CPG]

Answer 21

Statements that include recommendations intended to optimize patient care

Question 22

Diagnosis-related group [DRG]

Answer 22

Classifications based on a hospitalized patient’s primary and secondary medical diagnoses that are used as the basis for establishing Medicare reimbursement for patient care.

Question 23

Electronic health record [EHR]

Answer 23

An electronic record of patient health information generated whenever a patient accesses medical care in any health care delivery setting.

Question 24

Electronic medical record [EMR]

Answer 24

Part of the electronic health record that contains patient data gathered in a health care setting at a specific time and place.

Question 25

Incident Report

Answer 25

Confidential document that describes any patient accident while the person is on the premises of a health care agency.
Can be referred to as an occurrence report.

Question 26

Protective health information [PHI]

Answer 26

18 specific elements of patient information that must have specific administrative, physical, and technical safeguard.
Be familiar with these elements.

Question 27

Flow sheet

Answer 27

Graphic records where nurses routinely document patient physiologic data and routine care, usually organized by body system.

Question 28

Near-Miss

Answer 28

incidents in which a patient is exposed to a hazardous situation with the potential to cause harm but in which, for a variety of reasons (luck or early detection), no harm did occur