Infection Control & Prevention

Question 1

airborne precautions

Answer 1

measures taken to prevent the spread of disease transmitted by small (less than 5 microns) respiratory droplets from an infected person

Question 2

antimicrobial agents

Answer 2

agents that destroy or prevent the multiplication and growth of microbes and pathogens

Question 3

aseptic technique

Answer 3

technique and measures used to keep a person, object, or area free from contamination by pathogens

Question 4

contact precautions

Answer 4

measures taken to prevent the spread of diseases transmitted by the physical transfer of pathogens via direct or indirect contact

Question 5

droplet precautions

Answer 5

measures taken to prevent the spread of disease transmitted by small (greater than 5 microns) respiratory droplets from an infected person

Question 6

isolation precautions

Answer 6

comprise standard, contact, airborne, and droplet precautions in addition to protective environments for immunocompromised clients. The goal is to eliminate or reduce infection transmission from one person to another

Question 7

medical asepsis

Answer 7

practices and procedures to reduce the risk of infection including hand hygiene, environmental cleaning and barrier techniques

Question 8

personal protective equipment (PPE)

Answer 8

devices used to protect employees from workplace injuries or illnesses resulting from biological, chemical, radiological, physical, electric, mechanical or other workplace hazards

Question 9

standard precautions

Answer 9

a group of infection prevention practices that apply to all patients, regardless of suspected or confirmed infection status

Question 10

surgical asepsis

Answer 10

a sterile technique to prevent infection of a surgical wound that includes procedures to prohibit the presence of pathogens from the client, medical personnel, equipment and surgical environment

Question 11

transmission-based precautions

Answer 11

measures taken in addition to standard precautions to interrupt transmission of pathogens from clients who may be infected or colonized with certain infectious agents, specifically airborne, droplet, and contact precautions

Question 12

acute illness

Answer 12

third stage of infection where manifestation of a specific infectious disease process are obvious. Also, the stage where it is severe

Question 13

airborne infection isolation room (AIIR)

Answer 13

Single client rooms built with special air handling and ventilation to provide a negative pressure (relative to the surrounding area, such as the hall or neighboring rooms). Also referred to as a negative pressure room.

Question 14

chain of infection

Answer 14

How bacteria, viruses, fungi, parasites, and prions move from place to place. These are contact, droplet, and airborne.

Question 15

closed-glove technique

Answer 15

Used to don sterile gloves using surgical asepsis after the individual has performed a surgical hand scrub and donned a sterile gown; hands are kept inside the sterile gown until gloves are donned.

Question 16

direct contact transmission

Answer 16

Occurs when micro-organisms are directly moved from an infected person to another person, rather than through a contaminated object or person.

Question 17

enhanced barrier precautions

Answer 17

Nursing home staff must wear gown and gloves to prevent transfer of organisms to themselves or their clothing when engaging in certain client care activities.

Question 18

incubation

Answer 18

First stage of infection in which the client may not feel ill or have visible manifestations, however there may be lab values that are changes or changes in diagnostic tests such as x-rays or CT scans.

Question 19

indirect contact transmission

Answer 19

Occurs when microorganisms are directly moved from the infected person to another person with having a contaminated object or person between these two.

Question 20

infection control bundles

Answer 20

Guidelines for practice that are bundled together to help prevent HAIs such as CAUTIs, CLABSIs, VAPs, and SSIs.

Question 21

infectious agent

Answer 21

Something that contains bacteria, fungi, virus, parasite, prion.

Question 22

inflammatory response

Answer 22

Natural defense of the body when injured, when foreign substances are present or when infectious agents attack.

Question 23

local infections

Answer 23

Are confined to one area of the body.

Question 23

medical asepsis

Answer 23

Clean technique practices that the reduce the presence of disease-causing micro-organisms on surfaces.

Question 23

multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs)

Answer 23

Bacteria that are resistant to one or more classes of existing antimicrobials.

Question 24

nonspecific immunity

Answer 24

Comprised of neutrophils and macrophages and their work as phagocytes.

Question 25

period of convalescence

Answer 25

Fifth and last stage of infection when client returns to a normal or a new normal state of health.

Question 26

period of decline

Answer 26

Fourth stage of infection when manifestations begin to wane as the number of infectious disease decreases.

Question 27

phagocytes

Answer 27

Eat and destroy micro-organisms, thereby helping to protect the body from harm.

Question 27

portal of entry

Answer 27

Any body orifice–for example, ears, nose, mouth, or skin–that provides a place for an infectious agent to replicate or for a toxin to act.

Question 28

specific immunity

Answer 28

The work of antibodies (also called immunoglobulins) and lymphocytes.

Question 29

reservoir

Answer 29

Is the habitat of the infectious agent, a location where it can live, grow, and reproduce itself or replicate.

Question 30

protective isolation

Answer 30

Used during approximately the first 100 days after the transplant, specific engineering and hospital designs that decrease the risk of environmental fungi to the client who had HSCT.

Question 31

prodromal

Answer 31

Stage of infection when client begins having initial manifestations as the infectious agent replicates.

Question 32

portal of exit

Answer 32

Means by which the infectious agent can leave the reservoir.

Question 33

virulent

Answer 33

Term to describe how efficient an infectious agent is at making people ill.

Question 34

vehicle transmission

Answer 34

Transmission of infectious agents to various individuals through a common source, such as contaminated food or water.

Question 35

vector-borne transmission

Answer 35

Transmission of infectious agents through animals, such as an insect or rodent.

Question 36

systemic infections

Answer 36

Start as local infections and then transmit into the bloodstream to infect the entire body system.

Question 37

susceptible host

Answer 37

Required for the infectious agent to take hold and become a reservoir for infection. Not everyone who is exposed to an infectious agent will get ill. Some people never exhibit manifestations at all but can become colonized (temporarily or permanently) with the infectious agent.

Question 37

sterile fields

Answer 37

Created to assure that the smallest number of microorganisms possible are present; used for procedures where surgical asepsis is indicated.