Preventing Infections In Residential Care

The article Infection Control in Home Care was given by Emily Rhinehart in April 2001. This article is about the home care and infection control in the United States of America. This article stated that, in the past decades, the scope and intensity of home care have increased, whereas the strategies and prevention solutions of infection surveillance and control efforts have fallen behind (Rhinehart, 2001). Lack of applicable and consistent methods for surveillance and acute-care practices of prevention are needed to control infections. The article provides an understanding about the appropriate strategy and need of training to assess the infectious disease and their risk. In addition, the author has also stated the

Procedures and systems relevant to the prevention and control of infection are following companies’ policies and procedures which relate to correct hand washing procedure, wearing correct PPE for example gloves, aprons and protective clothing, the correct disposal of waste and using the correct cleaning equipment when cleaning spillages, surfaces, equipment, etc.

All areas that are being used for healthcare activities should be cleaned with either disinfectant wipes each morning and in between patients/procedures. Equipment should be all new out of the packets and clean. For things more major such as vasectomy’s, minor surgery or family planning clinics, areas should be cleaned everywhere with a disinfectant fluid and also with wipes, gloves should always be worn as well as other PPE such as aprons and hats. All equipment should be new from the packet and only touched by the person who is using

4.2: The potential risks of infection within the workplace can be very high in a care home as you are constantly coming into contact with people who may have infections, handling waste material which could be contaminated and working in an environment and with equipment which could be contaminated. This is why it is extremely important to wear the correct PPE and use the correct hand washing procedure and use the correct cleaning products.

The Nurses and Domestic Assistants need to seek advice from the managers and specialist personnel such as microbiologists or the Infection Control Team. They can then repeat the advice to other staff and to the family and visitors of the patient. The managers then get advice from The Department of Health, Databases and the Infection Control Team. They then give advice to the Care and Non-care staff as mentioned above.

The germs may spread between patient to patient on unclean hands of healthcare providers or inappropriate use or reuse of equipment.

To prevent and control an infection, we “as healthcare providers; nursing homes staff” have to break the cycle of infection by putting proper practices in place. A part of the cycle is the

An essential part of infection control is firstly identifying possible sources on infection, and secondly the modes by which the infection might be spread. Any infection is caused by one of four types of microorganisms, bacteria, viruses and protozoa. These organisms can be carried by both the patients and the staff, and on any equipment used within the practice. They can also be transferred outside the work place where patients may come

The patient will perform a self-care technique using proper infection control measures as it is essential for medical-surgical patient to practice and understand the skills needed to reduce the transmission of MRSA. Firstly, educate the client on maintaining a clean environment, and with MRSA, this means changing bedding, clothing and towels every day, and hand washing frequently. The nurse will teach the client how to perform self- care using proper infection control techniques. Secondly, the client will be instructed about cleaning the equipment using soap and water and disinfecting it with an appropriate disinfectant. The nurse will demonstrate proper hand hygiene to the client, explaining that it should be done when in contact with body

This assignment explains how diseases are transmitted from a source of infection to a defenceless host and explains the techniques used by staff as a part of clinical setting for controlling the spread of pathogens.

CLABI, pneumonia and urinary tract infections are the main hospital acquired infections most commonly affect adults age group above 65 years old. this age groups usually have many chronic illnesses which predispose them to more frequent visit to the health care facilities for care and for also predispose them to hospital admission and more frequent than other population. also lack proper individual hygiene assist in spreading the infection.

As for the spread of nosocomial infections, methods include airborne travel, direct person-to-person contact, droplets, vermin transmission (or vector borne transmission) and tangible vehicles found in hospitals. Airborne travel occurs when simple droplet nuclei of microorganisms remain in the air for extended periods of time. An example would be a sneeze or dust particles. Once these particles are inhaled by a host the infection can be contracted. Person-to-person contact is the most frequent transmission and includes a hand shake, touching, rubbing, patting, etc. Droplets are transmitted through certain operations involving the mouth, nose or throat, including bronchoscopy as well as coughing, sneezing and talking. Vermin is also a method of travel for these microorganisms as rats, roaches, mosquitoes and flies. Lastly, common hospital utilities and equipment, when they are not properly cleaned, can become a vehicle for contact. These may include medications, hospital devices, tools and equipment, even water and food.

The ideal image of a hospital is a safe place of sanctuary and healing, while in reality hospitals are an ideal place to spread infection, because in one place you have lots of people with infection, lots of vulnerable people and lots of traffic between infected and vulnerable people. A nosocomial infection can be defined as a local or systemic condition resulting from an infectious agent that occurs during admission to a healthcare facility, but was not present on admission. Viruses are a significant cause of nosocomial infection, accounting for 5% of all nosocomial infections in healthcare facilities annually in our healthcare facilities (Wright & Bieluch, 1993). Viral infections are generally most common in infants and children; however other groups can be affected including the elderly, patients with underlying medical conditions, immunocompromised patients and those in long-term healthcare facilities. These nosocomial viral infections are often associated with increased morbidity and mortality.

The environment plays a relatively minor role in transmitting infection, but dust, dirt and liquid residues will increase the risk. They should be kept to a minimum by regular cleaning and by good design features in buildings, fittings and fixtures. National initiatives such as The Health Act 2006, Essential steps to Safe Clean Care (2006), Towards cleaner hospitals and lower rates of infection (2004), and NHS Estates Healthcare Facilities Cleaning Manual (2009) all promote the importance of cleanliness in the healthcare environment, to assist in tackling the problem of healthcare acquired infections.

Human spread is one of the most common ways that infectious diseases transfer to another host. Some examples of human spread is through the air which is called airborne spread disease, through ingesting small amounts of human faeces and by bodily fluids such as mucous which is exerted through sternutation or by coughing. One of the most dangerous places of the modern world for infectious diseases to spread is in hospitals. Hospitals are thought to be a safe haven from diseases that may kill people but in reality hospitals contain some of the most powerful infectious diseases that can and are resistant to modern medicine. Within hospitals the population can be overcrowded and this becomes and breeding ground of sick individuals passing around infectious diseases. Human spread within the hospitals becomes very dangerous as there are many sick people within the same building. Diseases