ASEPSIS

• Virulence


  severity or harmfulness of a disease
• Nurses


  directly involved in providing a biologically safe environment
• Microorganisms


  exist everywhere: in water, in soil, and on body surfaces such as the skin, intestinal tract, and other areas open to the outside
• Communicable Disease


  an illness caused by an infectious agent or its toxins that occurs through the direct or indirect transmission of the infectious agent or its products from an infected individual or via an animal, vector or the inanimate environment to a susceptible animal or human host
• Virulence


  severity or harmfulness of a disease
• Infection


  Implantation and successful replication of an organism in the tissue of the host resulting in signs and symptoms.
• Infectious Agent


  Microorganism or Etiologic Agent
• Types of Microorganism


  Bacteria

  Fungi

  Parasites

  Virus
• Pathogenicity


  ability of an organism to produce a disease
• Pathogen


  microorganism that causes disease
• true pathogen


  is an infectious agent that causes disease in virtually any susceptible host
• Opportunistic pathogen


  are potentially infectious agents that rarely cause disease in individuals with healthy immune systems
• Asepsis


  freedom from disease-causing microorganisms
• Two types of Asepsis

  Medical Asepsis and Surgical Asepsis
• Medical Asepsis (clean technique)


  practices intended to confine/reduce microorganism
• Surgical Asepsis (sterile technique) 


  practices that keep an area or object FREE OF ALL microorganisms
• Sepsis


  condition in which acute organ dysfunction occurs secondary to infection
• bacteremia


  a condition when a culture of the individual’s blood reveals microorganisms
• septicemia 


  when bacteremia results in systemic infection
• Bacteria 


  most common infection-causing microorganism, unicellular
• virus


  consist of nucleic acid, must enter living cells to reproduce
• Fungi


  yeasts and molds
• parasites


  live on living organisms (protozoa, helminths, arthropods)
• Colonization


  process by which strains of microorganisms become resident flora. In this state, the microorganisms may grow and multiply but do not cause disease.
• Local infection


  imited to the specific part of the body where the microorganisms remain
• Systemic infection


  spread of infection to different parts of the body
• Acute infections


  generally appear suddenly or last a short time.
• Chronic infection


  may occur slowly, over a very long period, and may last months or years.
• CLABSI (Central IV Line-Associated Bloodstream Infection


  CAUSES: Improper tubing and site care technique, Inadequate hand hygiene
• CAUTI (Catheter-Associated Urinary Tract Infection)


  CAUSES: Improper catheterization technique, Contamination of closed drainage system, Inadequate hand hygiene
• SSI (Surgical Site Infections)


  CAUSES: Improper dressing change, Inadequate hand hygiene
• VAP (Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia)


  CAUSES: Improper suctioning, Inadequate hand hygiene
• Iatrogenic infections


  direct result of diagnostic or therapeutic procedures
• ETIOLOGIC AGENT


  any microbe capable of producing disease
• RESERVOIR


  where organisms survives and multiplies (people, animals, food, water, soil) / carrier is a human or animal reservoir
• PORTAL OF EXIT FROM RESERVOIR

  Microorganism: M. Tuberculosis / Reservoir: Respiratory Tract / Portal of exit: Nose or mouth by sneezing, coughing
• METHOD OF TRANSMISSION

  Direct transmission, indirect transmission, airborne transmission
• Direct transmission (touching, biting, kissing, sexual intercourse)


  droplet - form of direct transmission but can occur only if within 1 m/3ft (sneezing, coughing, spitting, singing, or talking)
• indirect transmission

  vehicle born transmission - fomites (inanimate materials or objects)
• indirect transmission


  vector born transmission - vector (animal or flying/crawling insect)