ELEMENTS OF COMPETENCY

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ELEMENTS OF COMPETENCY

• Identify risks of infection
• Apply standard infection control procedures as
  part of work routine
• Recognise situations when additional infection
  control procedures are required
• Identify other sources of infection
• Assess levels of risk

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INFECTION CONTROL

• Staying alert
• Assessing the situation
• Following your facilities policies and procedures
• Always exercise good hygiene practices
• Using protective equipment
• Following safe work practices

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CLINICAL WASTE

• Is anything that has the potential to cause
  sharps injuries, infection or offence.
• EG. Sharps, human tissue, bulky body fluids and
  blood, visibly blood stained fluids and visibly
  blood stained disposable material and equipment.

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DISPOSING OF CLINICAL WASTE

• Ensure bags have sufficient strength
• Do not overfill bags
• Bags tied or sealed and stored in a secure place
• Should not be transported in chutes
• Should be yellow with biohazard symbol
• Always wear gloves when handling clinical waste
  and containers.

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WHAT IS AN MSDS

• MATERIAL SAFETY DATA SHEET
• Suppliers are required to provide labels for and
  on containers and a material safety data sheet
  for hazardous substances they supply.

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REMEMBER

• Read the label
• Look for risk and safety phrases
• Look for signal words and symbols
• Follow the safety instructions
• Use only as directed

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Storage of chemicals

• If you must decant the new container should be
  labelled with risk and safety phrases.
• Must not come into contact with food
• Stored in secure, locked cupboard
• If flammable store away from heat

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INFECTION

• The invasion of the body by pathogenic agents
  with the subsequent multiplication and production
  of disease

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NOSOCOMIAL INFECTION

• An infection that develops during hospitalisation
  that was not present or incubating at the time of
  admission.
• 5-10 of patients will acquire a nosocomial
  infection.
• Urinary tract infection
• Skin infections
• Respiratory infections

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MICROBIOLOGY

• The study of micro-organisms too small to be seen
  without the aid of a microscope.

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MICRO-ORGANISM

• Any microscopic plant or animal cell, often a
  bacterium.
• Eg. Rickettsia
• Clamydia
• Protozoon
• Virus

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PATHOGEN

• A disease producing agent usually restricted to a
  living agent.

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STERILE

• Free from micro-organisms

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DISINFECTION

• A process that eliminates many or all
  micro-organisms except bacterial spores.

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STERILISATION

• Is the destruction of all living organisms,
  including spores.
• Eg. Steam under pressure
• Dry heat sterilisation
• Flash sterilisation

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COMENSAL ORGANISM

• Organisms that normally live in specific sites of
  the body without invading the tissues or causing
  infection.
• They are harmless in their normal site but can
  cause infection when transferred to an abnormal
  site.
• Eg. Escherichia Coli aid absorption of nutrients
  in the intestine.

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OPPORTUNISTIC INFECTION

• Are those which normally colonise the persons
  body without causing illness, but become
  pathogenic when the person is susceptible.
• Eg. MRSA Methicillin Resistant Staph Aureus
• VRE Vancomycin Resistant Enterococcus

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STANDARD PRECAUTIONS

• They apply to all patients and residents
  receiving care in health care facilities,
  regardless of their diagnosis or presumed
  infection status.
• Eg. Handwashing
• P.P.E.
• Correct disposal of linen, sharps, etc.

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ADDITIONAL TRANSMISSION BASED PRECAUTIONS

• Are designed for residents you know or suspect to
  be infected with pathogens for which additional
  precautions are needed. They are always in
  addition to standard precautions.
• Eg. Airborne precautions
• Droplet precautions
• Contact precautions

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WINDOW PERIOD

• Is the time between first infection and when a
  specific test can detect that infection,
  therefore an infected person or animal cannot be
  detected as infected but may still be able to
  infect others.
• Eg. HIV window period is 3 months.

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INFECTION CYCLE

• Causative organism Staphylococcus
• Reservoir nose
• Mode of escape Sneezing
• Mode of transmission Droplet
• Mode of entry on hands of nurse giving care
• Susceptible host wound

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Conditions favouring growth of bacteria

• Moisture
• Nutrients
• Correct temperature
• Oxygen
• Correct Ph
• Darkness

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SUSCEPTIBLE HOSTS

• The elderly
• Those undertaking invasive procedures
• Those taking immune-suppressing medication
• Those with wounds
• Those with poor cough reflex.

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IDENTIFY WAYS INFECTION CAN BE SPREAD

• Contact direct or indirect
• Droplet sneezing, coughing, talking or
  suctioning
• Airborne via air current, sweeping, shaking out
  linen
• Transmission based vectors animals
• (rats, birds, dogs, cats) or insects
  (mosquito, flies, ticks)

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IDENTIFY WAYS YOU CAN BREAK THE INFECTION CYCLE

• USING STANDARD PRECAUTIONS hand washing,
  wearing PPE, correct disposal of contaminated
  items.
• USING TRANSMISSION BASED PRECAUTIONS single
  rooms, separate ventilation, single use or
  individual utensils, limiting numbers of
  visitors.

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HAND WASHING PRACTICAL