Infection Prevention & Control Flashcards
What are the 6 steps in the chain of infection necessary to cause disease?
1) Pathogenic organism - of sufficient virulence and in adequate numbers to cause disease
2) Reservoir or source that allows the organism to survive and multiply
3) Mode of exit from the source
4) Mode of transmission from the source to the host
5) Portal of entry through which the pathogen can enter the host
6) Susceptible (ie. non-immune) host
Infection prevention and control refers to activities undertake with the aim of breaking the chain of infection, give 5 possible chain interventions?
1) Eliminate pathogenic organism
2) Remove source/reservoir
3) Minimise transmission
4) Eliminate exit and entry
5) Reduce susceptibility to infection
Give 4 examples of how pathogenic organisms can be eliminated?
1) Environmental cleaning and decontamination: H2O2 room decontamination, spillage management, laundry
2) Equipment decontamination: sterilisation, disinfection
3) Antisepsis: Surgical skin prep, MRSA decolonisation
4) Antibiotic prophylaxis: perioperative, post-exposure
Give 2 ways in which a source or reservoir can be removed?
1) Hand hygiene
2) Environmental cleaning and decontamination
Give 5 ways in which transmission can be minimised?
1) Hand hygiene
2) Personal protective equipment PPE
3) Equipment decontamination: Surgical instruments, stethoscopes, BP monitors, USS probes
4) Source and protective isolation
5) Use of disposable equipment: syringes, needles
Give 5 ways in which infection prevention and control can eliminate entry and exit?
1) Antisepsis: surgical skin prep
2) Asepsis: insertion and management of invasive devices
3) Air handling: air filtration and laminar flow, positive pressure ventilated lobby rooms
4) Sharps management
5) Patient management: minimise use an duration of invasive devices
Give 2 ways in which infection prevention and control reduces susceptibility to infection?
1) Ab stewardship - start smart then focus - reduce susceptibility to c.diff infection, reduce change of colonisation with multi-resistant organisms
2) Immunisation
What is meant by surveillance in infection prevention and control?
Process of gathering information to ensure that disease outbreaks are pre-empted or identified early
Have alert organisms (organisms with the propensity to cause outbreaks) and alert conditions (conditions caused by such organisms)
How is surveillance carried out in infection prevention an control?
Hospitals - IPC team, passive surveillance: clinical reporting and laboratory records, active surveillance: seeking out trouble e.g. surgical site infection surveillance programmes
Community - legislation on reportable/notifiable diseases
What is meant by the process of sterilisation?
1) Complete killing or removal of all types of micro-organisms - bacteria both vegetative and spores, viruses, fungi and mycobacteria
Which 2 common bacteria survive as spores?
1) Clostridium tetani
2) C.difficile
What is meant by vegetative bacteria?
Bacteria endowed with the power or faculty of growth
Give the 4 main methods of sterilisation?
1) Heat - moist, dry
2) Chemical - gas, liquid
3) Filtration
4) Ionising radiation - used for single use disposable equipment
Give the 2 methods of sterilisation by heat?
1) Moist heat - autoclave - delivery of steam under high pressure, specific pressure and temperature cycles
2) Dry heat - oven - controlled temperature cycles, 160 degrees for 2 hours or 170 degrees for 1 hr
What is meant by disinfection?
Removal or destruction of sufficient numbers of potentially harmful micro-organisms to make an item safe to use
