Costs associated with treating HOSPITAL-ACQUIRED INFECTIONS (HAIs) account for a sizable portion of the total for medical treatment in the United States. On any given day, at least one in twenty-five hospitalised patients in the United States is coping with a healthcare-associated infection (HAI), as reported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Health care-associated infections (HAIs) are a major contributor to rising healthcare expenses and can possibly be fatal. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends these measures to assist prevent the spread of infection in your facility (WHO).
1. Please practise proper hand hygiene
The most important step in eliminating HAIs is simple hand washing. Be sure to vigorously wash your hands with soap and warm water for at least 20 seconds. Staff members and visitors should be reminded to wash their hands frequently, especially before and after handling patients.
2. Draft an Infection Control Procedure
The patients most at risk for acquiring or transmitting HAIs are identified in the infection control policy. The HAI infection prevention policy should outline the circumstances under which patients require isolation from other patients and employees.
3. Viruses should be found and reported immediately
Anticipating the presence of highly contagious illnesses like clostridium difficile (c. diff) is crucial. Any patient in with symptoms of diarrhoea, for instance, needs to be checked for C. diff. Those who have breathing problems should also get a flu shot.
4. Instruct them on how to avoid spreading germs
Employees should be trained to recognise the symptoms of common infectious diseases and take measures to stop their spread. Because of this, it's important that your company provides regular updates on how to prevent the spread of infections. Learning about the dangers of bloodborne pathogens and other contagions spread through the air is part of this curriculum.
5. Wear Protective Hand Gear
When treating patients, doctors and nurses don't always have to wear gloves. However, gloves should be used anytime there is a chance of coming into touch with blood or other bodily fluids, such as while changing bedding or emptying the garbage.
6. Be sure your employees have the proper PPE to work in isolation
Protective gear for use in isolation settings comprises gowns, gloves, shoe covers, and face shields or masks that are watertight. It's important to have the means to isolate people who have contagious diseases on hand.
7. Always keep the floors and counters clean and free of germs
Bleach-based cleaners should be used to give every room a thorough scrub between patients. This aids in avoiding the spread of disease while admitting new patients. In addition, the nurses' lounge and administrative offices need to be spick-and-span every day.
8. Don't let patients go around barefoot.
Even though no one like wearing shoes while sick, it is important that patients be urged to do so whenever they are moving around the hospital or their rooms. This may seem severe, but it's necessary since nurses and other visitors might bring germs from adjacent rooms and corridors into a patient's space.
9. Linens should be changed daily or as needed when they become dirty
Patient bed linens should not be left on the bed for long periods of time without first being laundered and adequately disinfected. Whenever possible, or at least once every day, bed linens should be changed. Additionally, any linens that end up on the floor must be returned to the laundry and cleaned right away.
It is the responsibility of everyone at work to practise a high standard of personal hygiene and to follow infection prevention and control principles in the workplace.Watch out this video for more information:
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