Hospital
environments have become an essay channel to contact infectious diseases nowadays.
The most worrisome aspect is the way patients and visitors carry on when they
are in the hospital environment which have left so much to be desired.
Take,
for instance, a nursing mother who allows her baby to crawl around, fully aware
of the possibility of the child picking things and putting them in his mouth.
Where
there is no object in sight, the child may insert his dirty hands in his mouth
for whatever reasons.
What
about adults who touch all available surfaces as they use the hospital, without
the faintest idea that they may pick up infectious pathogens that could make
them and everybody in their circle – family and friends – sick.
Experts said hospital-acquired infections (medically called nosocomial infections)
now affect three in 25 patients.
Indeed,
researchers noted that the most common hospital-acquired infections include
central line-associated bloodstream infections (which occur when germs enter
the bloodstream through a central line); catheter-associated urinary tract
infections, surgical site infections after surgery and clostridium difficile
infections (a bacterium that causes diarrhoea and more serious intestinal
conditions).
Experts
warn that the situation is growing more dangerous because it has been found
that hospital-acquired infections may not respond to regular antibiotics.
They
lament that people who have contagious infections are allowed to mingle freely
with other patients as they all wait to see the doctor. Consequently, she says,
someone who has come to treat malaria fever may return home with tuberculosis
if he happens to come into contact with the droplets of an infected person in
the hospital waiting room.
.
Some
patients acquire nosocomial infections by interacting with other patients,
experts say; while others encounter bacteria, fungi, parasites, or viruses in
their hospital environment.
The way
out
Infection
control is the responsibility of all health care professionals. As such, they
must practice the following.
Hand decontamination
Transmission
of hospital infections can be minimised with appropriate hand hygiene; while
care givers must be knowledgeable about possible risks and procedures so as to
guard against infections.
Personal hygiene
“All
hospital staff must maintain good personal hygiene. Nails must be clean and
kept short. False nails should not be worn. Hair must be worn short or pinned
up. Beard and moustaches must be kept trimmed and clean,” experts counsel.
Shoes
All
aseptic units and operating rooms, health workers must wear dedicated shoes,
which must be easy to clean.
Safe injection practices
In
order to prevent transmission of infections between patients who take
injections, experts suggest the elimination of unnecessary injections, and the
use of disposable sterile needle and syringes. “After they are done, they must
also follow safe sharp disposal practices,” the physician says.
Cleaning of the hospital environment
Experts
say routine cleaning is necessary to ensure that a hospital environment is
visibly clean and free from dust and soil.
“This
is because 90 per cent of microorganisms are present within visible dirt, and
the purpose of routine cleaning is to eliminate this dirt. There must be
policies specifying the frequency of cleaning and cleaning agents used for
walls, floors, windows, beds, curtains, screens, fixtures, furniture, baths and
toilets, and all reused medical devices.
Gloves
Hospital
workers are expected to wear sterile gloves for surgery, and also when
attending to patients. Gloves must be changed each time a new patient is to be
examined. Hands must be washed when gloves are removed or changed; while
disposable gloves should not be reused.
As for
hospital visitors and patients, always wash hands with soap and water after
visit.
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