HEALTH CARE ASSOCIATED INFECTIONS
Health care associated infections
(HAI)
Infections are encountered in all
health care settings. It is also called nosocomial infections, hospital
acquired infection.
Environment:
Hospitals, outpatient clinics, extended care facilities, the home, and schools
are reservoirs of organisms that pose threats to the increasing number of
people who have decreased
resistance. Eg: one
multicenter sampling study found bacterial growth in 90 of 92 bath basins
cultured (98%), indicating a possible source of transmission of HAI( Johnson,
Lineweaver, &
Maze 2009). Eg.
Pneumonia and influenza are the common most infections spread rapidly among
patients.
Therapeutic regimen: Multiple factors involved in therapies used to treat patients also can
contribute to risk of infection. Drugs such as steroids immunosuppressive
agents, and cancer therapy, as well as prolonged use of antibiotics, predispose
patients to infection.
Equipment such as IV catheters,
urinary catheters, feeding tubes and ventilators provide routes for bacterial
and fungal invasion. Eg. Inadequate
dressing techniques for wounds can provide media for bacterial growth.
Patient resistance: Changes in the physical or psychological status of a patient can affect
his or her resistance to infection. Any break in the integrity of the skin or
mucous membranes increases the chance of infection. For example, surgical site
infections (SSIs) pose a very serious and common threat to postoperative patients. Eg. Stress, fatigue, poor nutrition
and hygiene and chronic illness also decrease the patient's ability toward off
infection by impairing normal defenses.
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