Workforce Safety and Wellness Flashcards
Eustress
- increased focus
- energy in the short term
- Increased job satisfaction and self-image from performing well under a challenging situation
distress
- Short-term feelings of being overwhelmed
- increased anxiety
- loss of focus
- long-term psychological and physiologic difficulties
Wellness
the active pursuit of a state of good health
resilience
an individual’s capacity to cope with and recover from distress. Although some people tend to be more resilient than others, a person’s resilience may change.
Infections disease
a medical condition caused by the growth and spread of harmful organisms within the body.
communicable disease
a disease that can be spread from one person or species to another.
infection
The abnormal invasion of a host or host tissues by organisms such as bacteria, viruses, or parasites, with or without signs or symptoms of disease.
pathogen
a microorganism that is capable of causing disease in a susceptible host.
contamination
the presence of pathogens or foreign bodies on or in objects such as dressings, water, food, needles, wounds, or a patient’s body.
exposure
is a situation in which a person has had contact with blood, body fluids, tissues, or airborne particles in a manner that may allow disease transmission to occur.
Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
protective equipment that an individual wears to prevent exposure to a pathogen or other hazardous condition.
Transmission
the way an infectious disease is spread.
Direct Contact
occurs when an organism moves from one person to another through touching without any intermediary.
hepatits
Inflammation of the liver, usually caused by a viral infection, that causes fever, loss of appetite, jaundice, fatigue, and altered liver function.
Bloodborne pathogens
microorganisms that are present in human blood and can cause disease in humans.
human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)
Acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) is caused by HIV, a virus that damages the cells in the body’s immune system so that the body is unable to fight infection or certain cancers.
indirect contact
involves the spread of infection from the patient with an infection to another person through an inanimate object. The object that transmits the infection is called a fomite. Needlesticks are another example of how infection spreads through indirect contact.
Airborne transmission
involves spreading an infectious agent through mechanisms such as droplets or dust.
Foodborne transmission
involves the contamination of food or water with an organism that can cause disease.
vector-borne transmission
involves the spread of infection by animals or insects that carry an organism from one person or place to another.
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
The federal regulatory compliance agency that develops, publishes, and enforces guidelines concerning safety in the workplace.
Standard precautions
Protective measures that have traditionally been developed by the CDC for use in dealing with contaminated objects, blood, body fluids, and other potential exposure risks of communicable disease.
designated officer
The individual in the department who is charged with the responsibility of managing exposures and infection control issues.
Infection Control
Procedures to reduce transmission of infection among patients and health care personnel.
immunity
The body’s ability to protect itself from acquiring a disease.
hosts
The organism or individual that is attacked by the infecting agent
cover
involves the tactical use of an impenetrable barrier for protection.
concealment
involves hiding behind objects to limit a person’s ability to see you.
general adaptation syndrome
The body’s response to stress that begins with an alarm response, followed by a stage of reaction and resistance, and then recovery or, if the stress is prolonged, exhaustion.
three stages:
alarm response
reaction and resistance
recover (if the stress is prolonged, exhaustion)
Posttraumatic Stress disorder (PTSD)
A delayed stress reaction to a prior incident; often the result of one or more unresolved issues concerning the incident and may relate to an incident that involved physical harm or the threat of physical harm.
critical incident stress management (CISM)
A process that confronts the responses to critical incidents and defuses them, directing the emergency services personnel toward physical and emotional equilibrium.
Burnout
a term used to describe a combination of exhaustion, cynicism, and reduced performance resulting from long-term job stresses in health care and other high-stress professions.
Compassion fatigue
(secondary stress disorder) is a disorder characterized by gradual lessening of compassion over time.
Alveoli
The air sacs of the lungs in which the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide takes place.
pleura
The serous membranes covering the lungs and lining the thorax, completely enclosing a potential space known as the pleural space.
pleural space
The potential space between the parietal pleura and the visceral pleura; described as “potential” because under normal conditions the space does not exist.
Diaphragm
A muscular dome that forms the undersurface of the thorax, separating the chest from the abdominal cavity. Contraction of this (and the chest wall muscles) brings air into the lungs. Relaxation allows air to be expelled from the lungs.
ventilation
the simple movement of air between the lungs and the environment
respiration
the process of gas exchange
diffusion
a passive process in which molecules move from an area with a higher concentration of molecules (the air) to an area of lower concentration (the bloodstream).
Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)
Fluid produced in the ventricles of the brain that flows in the subarachnoid space and bathes the meninges.
hypoxic drive
A “backup system” to control respiration; senses drops in the oxygen level in the blood.
Tidal volume
the amount of air that is moved into or out of the lungs during a single breath, generally 500 mL in an adult.
inspiratory reserve volume
the deepest breath you can take after a normal breath.
expiratory reserve volume
the maximum amount of air that you can forcibly breathe out after a normal breath.
residual volume
gas remaining in the lungs after exhalation to keep the lungs open.
dead space
is the portion of the respiratory system that has no alveoli, and little or no exchange of gas between air and blood occurs.
minute volume
The volume of air that moves in and out of the lungs per minute; calculated by multiplying the tidal volume and respiratory rate; also called minute ventilation.
labored breathing
The use of muscles of the chest, back, and abdomen to assist in expanding the chest; occurs when air movement is impaired.
Circulatory system
closed, with capillaries connecting arterioles and venules.
systemic circulation
The portion of the circulatory system outside of the heart and lungs.
- Carries oxygen-rich blood from the left ventricle through the body and back to the right atrium.
- As blood passes through the tissues and organs, it gives up oxygen and nutrients and absorbs cellular wastes and carbon dioxide.
- Cellular wastes are eliminated in passages through the liver and kidneys.
pulmonary circulation
The flow of blood from the right ventricle through the pulmonary arteries and all of their branches and capillaries in the lungs and back to the left atrium through the venules and pulmonary veins; also called the lesser circulation.
- Carries oxygen-poor blood from the right ventricle through the lungs and back to the left atrium.
- As blood passes through the lungs, it is refreshed with oxygen and gives up carbon dioxide.
heart
made of a specialized muscle tissue called the cardiac muscle (myocardium)
atrium and ventricle
Atrium: One of the two upper chambers of the heart.
Ventricle: One of the two lower chambers of the heart.
pulmonary veins
The four veins that return oxygenated blood from the lungs to the left atrium of the heart.
