1. INFECTION CONTROL

2. Why is Infection Control Important?

3. Florence Nightingale (1859)
“Hospitals should do the sick no harm”.
Florence Nightingale (1859)

4. Patients are vulnerable to infection

5. WHERE CAN MICRO-ORGANISMS BE FOUND ?
Environment
People
Equipment
Food
WHAT DO MICRO-ORGANISMS NEED TO GROW?
Warmth
Moisture
Food source
Time

6. HOW DO THEY SPREAD? Hands Through the air Via equipment e.g. Commodes
Puncture of the skin
Food
An infected person
Droplets
Contact
Skin scales

7. Standard precautions are the minimal level of infection control precautions that apply to all patients at all times in all situations.

8. Who is responsible for implementing
Standard Precautions?

9. We all are.
All NHSGGC employees must follow the requirements of the Standard Precautions Policy – See your ward Infection Control Manual for information.

10. Isolating infectious patients
Masks and Eye protection
Hand hygiene
Environment
PPE
There are 10 elements to Standard Precautions
Clinical Waste
Linen
Occupational Exposure
Isolating infectious patients
Patient care equipment
Spillages
Cough Etiquette

11. Hand Hygiene
The simplest and most effective method of preventing the spread of infection

12. Hand Hygiene Simple and effective
Proven to reduce the risk of acquiring HAI
Use of alcohol gels
Performed between each patient intervention
Ensure technique is good

13. Remember to wash past your wrists
Palm to palm fingers interlaced.
Wet hands, apply soap. Palm to palm.
Right palm over left dorsum and left palm over right dorsum.
Rotational rubbing, backwards and forwards with clasped fingers of right hand in left palm and vice versa.
Rotational rubbing of right thumb clasped in left palm and vice versa.
Backs of fingers to opposing palms with fingers interlocked.
Remember to wash past your wrists

15. Alcohol Hand Gel Used as a compliment to handwashing not a replacement
Good for rapid disinfection of skin
Can only be used on physically clean hands
Suitable for use on ward rounds between patients.
Should only be used up to 5 times then wash hands with soap and water
Placed at every bed space within NHSGGC
In our day to day lives we carry out risk assessment in an ongoing basis without really thinking about it.
In order to manage a risk we have to know what the risk is.
Infection control is about minimising risks, in order to do this it is necessary to know what the risk is.
For example while the hand hygiene policy states that alcohol gel is at every bedside, but there will be areas where this might not be appropriate e.g. paediatrics and a risk assessment needs to be done by both the infection control nurses and the ward staff to ensure that the staff can decontaminate their hands and the patients are safe.

16. PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT (PPE)
Gloves
Aprons
Eye protection
Face shields
Masks

17. Isolation Protective Vulnerable patients, with poor immune systems.
Patients who may be receiving chemotherapy
Stop these patients catching an infection
Source
Patients identified as carrying bugs that could cause other patients to become ill if it was passed onto them.

18. Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA)
What is MRSA?
What are the predisposing risk factors?
What is colonised, What is infected?
How is MRSA transmitted

19. MRSA screening Who should be screened When should they be screened
What samples should be taken
What treatment should be given
What about isolation

20. Clostridium difficile
Symptoms
Watery, foul smelling stools.
Abdominal pain.
Pyrexia (high temperature)
Dehydration.

21. How to prevent spread of Clostridium Difficile to other patients
If they have diarrhoea send a sample.
Isolate them in a side room.
Use Personal Protective Equipment.
Encourage the patient to wash their hands after using the toilet.
Clean the commode thoroughly after every use with Actichlor Plus.

22. OUTBREAKS

23. OUTBREAKS What is an outbreak
When should infection control be notified
What information is required
Can patients be discharged/transferred
Can patients attend for examinations e.g. x-ray
Enhanced cleaning
Outbreak is over, what now?

24. BRISTOL STOOL CHART Type 1 Separate hard lumps, like nuts hard to pass
Long Transit
e.g 100 hours
Type 1
Separate hard lumps,
like nuts hard to pass
Type 2
Sausage shaped but lumpy
Type 3
Like sausage but with cracks on the surface
Type 4
Like sausage or snake, smooth and soft
Type 5
Soft blobs with clear cut edges (passed easily)
Type 6
Fluffy pieces with ragged edges, a mushy stool
Type 7
Watery, no solid pieces
Types 1-5 do not send specimens to microbiology.
Types 6 and 7 send specimens to microbiology
Short transit
e.g 10 hours

25. Prevention and Control of Infection Team
There are Prevention and Control of Infection Teams available for specialist Infection Control advice within NHSGGC
Contact details of local Infection Control Teams (ICT) can be found within NHSGGC Prevention and Control of Infection Manual, via your local switchboard or website;