WEEK ONE - infection prevention + control Flashcards
infection
invasion of bodily tissue by pathogenic microorganisms that proliferate, resulting in tissue injury that can progress to disease
resident flora
microorganisms that are always present on or in the host, usually without altering the health of hosts - harder to remove
transient flora
microorganisms that are episodic and usually do not continually live on or in host
importance of infection control in hospitals
- more patients = more infections in the hospital
- patients in hospitals are highly susceptible to HAI
- HAI can have long-term or fatal effects (more hospital expenses, longer hospital stay, declined health, death)
vulnerable patients
oncology, elderly, paediatric, pregnant, burns, surgical
modes of transmission
contact, droplet, airborne, food borne, water borne, vector borne
healthcare-associated infections
infection acquired whilst in hospital
- most common are UTI, pneumonia and surgical site infections
iatrogenic infections
HAI as a result of diagnostic or therapeutic procedures
exogenous
infection from organisms that are external to the persons own flora
endogenous
part of patients own flora in one body site is able to multiply and move to other body site
causes of HAI
surgical procedures, lack of hand hygiene and standard precautions, lack of use and care of urinary catheters (UTI)
consequences of HAI
increased financial costs, increased risk of adverse outcomes for patients, fewer hospital beds available, a rise of multi-drug resistant microorganisms
role of nurses in infection prevention and control
prevent and control spread of disease, infection control, break linkages in chain of infection
standard precautions
minimum requirements for the basic level of infection control
- hand hygiene, use of personal PPE, waste management, use and cleaning of medical equipment
additional precautions
maybe required in certain circumstances
appropriate PPE, patient dedicated equipment, single rooms, enhanced cleaning, restricted transfer
