Institute:Office of National Coordinator (ONC) Workforce Training Curriculum
Component:The Culture of Health Care
Unit:Sociotechnical Aspects: Clinicians and Technology
Lecture:Patient safety
Slide content:Infection Control as a Patient Safety Measure Examples of methodologies used to control infection in the inpatient setting Emphasis on hand hygiene Immunizing health care professionals to avoid the spread of disease Using antibiotics appropriately to reduce antibiotic resistance Identifying and appropriately isolating patients with infectious pathogens Revising training and competency assessments Using safer medications 6
Slide notes:6 Hospital-acquired infections can be dangerous, and even fatal. Controlling infections in the hospital setting is an important patient safety measure, and many methods have been used to address this issue. One focus has been on improving hand hygiene. Clinicians have been encouraged to follow good hand-washing practices, and compliance has improved after the addition of waterless hand rubs, as opposed to using soap and water. Another method has been an emphasis on immunizing healthcare professionals to prevent the spread of disease. Using antibiotics appropriately for infected patients reduces the incidence of antibiotic overuse and the emergence of resistant microorganisms. If infectious patients are admitted to the hospital, they must be identified and isolated to control the spread of that infection in the hospital setting. Infection control also involves revising and updating training measures, improving competency assessments, and recommending suitable hand-washing procedures. Infection control is also achieved by promoting safety with respect to medications or delivery systems. For example, using single-use IV flush vials instead of multi-dose vials reduces the risk of cross-contamination or the introduction of infection into the environment. Hospital-acquired infections can be dangerous and even fatal. Controlling infections in the hospital setting is an important patient safety measure, and many methods have been used to address this issue. One focus has been on improving hand hygiene. Clinicians are encouraged to follow good hand-washing practices, and compliance has improved after the addition of waterless hand rubs as opposed to using soap and water. Another method has been an emphasis on immunizing health care professionals to prevent the spread of disease. Using antibiotics appropriately for infected patients reduces the incidence of antibiotic overuse and the emergence of resistant microorganisms. If infectious patients are admitted to the hospital, they must be identified and isolated to control the spread of that infection in the hospital setting. Infection control also involves revising and updating training measures, improving competency assessments, and recommending suitable hand-washing procedures. Infection control is one significant component addressed in providers policies and procedures. Infection control is also achieved by promoting safety with respect to medications or delivery systems. For example, using single-use IV flush vials instead of multidose vials reduces the risk of cross-contamination or the introduction of infection into the environment. Although focused on the hospital setting, efforts to control infections also apply to all other types of health care providers.