L2 - Infection | PMTP

• infection - happens when a microorganism invades the body, multiplies and causes injury or disease
• communicable infections - can spread from person to person
• healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) - caused by infected personnel, patients, visitors, food, drug, or equipment while a patient is in the hospital or other healthcare facilities
• pathogen - disease-causing microbe which that can be bacteria, fungi, protozoa or virus
• infectious or causative agent - the pathogenic microbe that can be virus, bacteria, fungus, protozoa and rickettsia
• reservoir - source of the agent of infection or place where the microbe could grow, survive and multiply, which could be in humans, animals, food, water, soil or equipment
• exit pathway - a way an infectious agent can leave the reservoir host that can be through secretions, tissue specimens, blood, feces or urine
• means of transmission - airborne, direct or indirect, droplets (coughing or sneezing), vector (insect, arthropod, or animal) and vehicle (food, water, drugs)
• entry pathway - the way an infectious agent enters a host that includes body orifices, mucous membranes and breaks in the skin
• susceptible host - someone who is prone to infection, especially the elderly, newborn babies, patients who are immune-surpressed or unvaccinated and those suffering from acute or chronic illness
• a healthcare institution should have a set of procedures to break the chain of infection
• Infection Control Program

  • Effective hand hygiene procedure
  • Good nutrition
  • Immunization against common pathogens
  • Insect and pest control
  • Isolation and decontamination procedures
  • Use of proper safety devices
  • Wearing of PPE
  • Proper disposal of sharp objects and other waste materials
• Four Function of Infection Control Program

  1. To protect patients, employees and visitors from infection
  2. To screen employees from infectious diseases and to require immunization when needed
  3. To provide evaluation and treatment to health workers who have been exposed to infections while performing their duty
  4. To monitor employees and patients who are at risk of infection and to collect data from patients and health workers who have been exposed to such danger
• Infection control methods or procedures must be followed at all times
• Infection Control Procedure

  • Ensuring that proper hand hygiene is practiced consistently using alcohol-based antiseptic hand cleaners
  • PPE is clean and properly donned and removed
• hand hygiene - an essential part of standard precautions because of its effectiveness to prevent infections
• routine hand washing

  • uses plain soap and water
  • when hands are visibly dirty
  • after known exposure to Clostridium difficile, Bacillus anthracis and infectious diarrhea during norovirus outbreak
  • before eating
  • after using the restroom
• hand antisepsis

  • an antimicrobial soap or alcohol-based hand sanitizer to remove transient microorganisms
  • alcohol-based hand sanitizer is preferred when hands are not visibly dirty
  • put the sanitizer on hands, rub the hands together for about 20 seconds or until it feels dry
• CDC Guidelines for Hand Hygiene in Health Settings

  • When washing hands with soap and water, wet hands with water, apply soap and rub hands vigorously making sure that all the surfaces are covered for at least 15 seconds
  • Rinse the hands with water (do not use hot water because it will cause dryness in the skin) and use disposable towel to dry hands
  • Use disposable towel to turn off
• phlebotomists should always wear gloves during blood collection and when handling specimen
• gloves are worn to prevent contamination of the hands and reduce changes of transmission of microorganism personnel to patients
• gloves should be worn over the cuffs of the lab gown to ensure protection
• the PPE is kept clean and is worn to protect the HCW from splashes of blood and specimen during the patient-care activities
• PPE are removed at the anteroom or before leaving the room of the patient in an aseptic, sterile and pathogen-free way to avoid contamination
• Donning of PPE

  1. Gown
  2. Mask
  3. Gloves
• Doffing of PPE

  1. Gloves
  2. Gown
  3. Mask
• Make sure that the lab gown is fastened, and the belt is tied
• Donning of Mask

  
  

  mask should cover both the nose and mouth
• gloves should be pulled over the gown cuff
• the contaminated areas of the gloves should not be touched with ungloved hands
• gown should be pulled from the shoulders toward the hand so it is turned inside out
• Doffing of Mask

  
  

  mask should be removed by only touching the string
• when the colored portion of the mask is exposed, you are protecting yourself from infection
• if the white portion is exposed, it means that you are protecting others from being infected because you might be a carrier of a disease
• newborns are most susceptible to infections because of their underdeveloped immune system, thus anyone who enters the nursery area or neonatal ICU should follow the infection control procedure
• in the clinical lab, HCW may be exposed to blood-borne pathogens by needlestick or other injuries caused by sharp objects
• blood-borne pathogens - microorganisms in the human blood that are infectious and can cause diseases
• biohazard - any material that could be harmful to one's health
• biosafety - to prevent and protect clinical labs from harmful incidents caused by lab specimens that are potential biohazards
• airborne - splashes and aerosols during centrifuge and aliquot or patients with airborne diseases