Lecture 4: Infection Control and Personal Safety Flashcards
What counts as a healthcare acquired infection?
- Nosocomial infections
- Any infection acquired by a patient while receiving tx
How much do we spend on HAIs annually?
28.4B
What are the MC sites for a HAI?
- Surgical site infection
- PNA
- GI infections
What HAI types increased during covid? What decreased?
- CLABSIs (central line-associated bloodstream)
- CAUTIs (catheter acquired)
- VAEs (Ventilator associated events)
- MRSA
- Decreased: C. diff infections
RFs for HAIs?
- Indwelling medical devices (IVs, ETT, foleys)
- Skin breaks
- Contamination of healthcare environment
- Transmission between pts and staff
- Overuse or improper use of ABX
What are the NEVER events for a hospital?
- Retained object during surg
- CAUTIs
- CLABIs
- Administration of incompatible blood products
- Air embolism
- Patient fall
- Pressure ulcers
- Certain surgical site infections
What falls under standard precautions?
- Hand hygiene
- PPE (gloves, gowns, masks, respirators)
- Safe injection
- Safe handling
- Coughing etiquette
Minimum infection protection standards for ALL pt care
Replaced universal precautions
When is soap and water indicated for hand hygiene?
- Visibly soiled hands
- Post-care for pts with infectious diarrhea
Otherwise do an alcohol based sanitizer
What is the final step after you have doffed all your PPE?
Hand Hygiene
What kind of technique is injection safety?
Aseptic technique
What is considered a critical item among medical equipment?
- Anything entering sterile tissue or vascular system
- MUST BE STERILE
- IV catheters, surgical tools
What is considered a semi-critical item among medical equipment?
- Mucous membrane or non-intact skin contact
- High-level disinfection prior to reuse
- Colonoscopes
What are non-critical items in medical equipment?
- Intact skin only, no mucous membranes
- Low/intermediate disinfection
- BP cuffs
What are contact precautions?
- On top of standard: Gown and gloves upon entry
- Single-use/disposable/pt-dedicated equipment only
- mainly for infections that spread via contact or surfaces
If an organism is likely to release spores when disinfected, what kind of disinfectant do you need to use?
Hypochlorite: bleach
What are droplet precautions?
- Infections spread via close respiratory or mucous membrane contact with respiratory secretions
- Mask + standard precautions
- Single room preferred or 3+ feet + curtain
- If patient goes outside, wear mask outside
What are airborne precautions?
- Infections that spread long distances and suspend in the air via particles
- Requires special respiratory protection + ventilation
- Mask or respirator according to disease, usually N95 at minimum
- Airborne infection isolation room (neg pressure)
- If worker is not-vaccinated against a preventable one, they should not enter.
