Healthcare workers and staff at healthcare facilities are at higher risk of infection as compared with the general population. This is because they are constantly exposed to contact with infectious sources. However, measures to control infection must be designed to protect healthcare workers, healthcare facility staff and patients in settings that increase the risk of transmission.
This includes facilities where infection risk is high, not just where infectious diseases have been diagnosed. When healthcare workers are exposed to infection, they increase the risk of spreading infectious diseases throughout their immediate healthcare environment to fellow workers and their patients. Therefore, infection control must be conducted to ensure the safety of all those working or receiving care in these environments. This is especially true in the current environment, with the spread of COVID.
Potential for Transmission
Because there are different levels of risk, each potential level of transmission must be considered. Therefore, transmission reduction strategies must include:
- Workplace and administrative control measures to reduce risk of exposure from staff to patients, from patient to patient, staff member to staff member, etc.
- Environmental control measures to help reduce concentrations of infectious matter such as droplet nuclei
- Use of personal protective equipment (respiratory protection) for staff at higher risk for exposure to higher concentrations of blood, droplet nuclei, etc.
- Administrative and environmental control measures
- Immediate separation of confirmed cases of transmittable infections
Specific strategies for each scenario addresses infection control, however, there must also be measures in place to identify infections with the implementation of case detection procedures.
What are the Risks of Infection?
Risk factors increase for different patient groups such as children and seniors and those with compromised immune systems. However, other risks include the length of time or stays in a healthcare facility, the need for indwelling catheters, overuse of antibiotics and failure to follow proper hygiene protocols by healthcare workers. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), 1 in 25 U.S. hospital patients is diagnosed with at least one hospital-related infection.
This does not include infections related to other healthcare settings. Common infections include:
- Urinary tract infections
- Surgical site infections
- Pneumonia or lung infections
- Bloodstream infections
Infections can also lead to outbreaks of highly contagious illnesses making infection control all the more important.
Avoiding Outbreaks
Outbreaks often occur due to poor infection control compliance and practices or contaminated equipment or medications. Although Epi-Aid is available through the CDC to assist with serious outbreaks, the healthcare facility is still faced with getting outbreaks under control as quickly as possible. Containment strategies help avoid the dangers of an outbreak including:
- The ability for rapid identification
- Infection control assessments
- Colonization screening availability
- Coordinated response between facilities
- Continue assessments and colonization screenings until spread is controlled
However, all of these strategies are extremely expensive.
Why is Infection Control Important
Cost of Outbreaks
Risk rises once an outbreak is detected. Any healthcare facility or hospital should be diligent when it comes to infection control, or risk a range of consequences that may include:
- Reputational risk affecting potential patients and staff decisions
- Longer patient stays which can further increase patients’ risk
- Longer patient stays resulting in fewer available beds for other patients
- Higher patient cost with no additional insurance reimbursements
- Decreased insurance reimbursements or other fines and penalties
- Audit risk from government and accreditation/industry organizations
- Litigation risk
The CDC assists in informing the public about the outbreak and provides advice to help communities control the spread. This ensures individuals know how to protect themselves.
Information is also provided to the medical and public health community following outbreaks to help prevent future infections. However, by healthcare facilities adopting strict infection control policies, they can ensure they prevent not only outbreaks but infections of each patient in their care.
If you would like information about infection control in general and around Vascular Access Services in particular for your healthcare facility, speak to our team today.
Vascular Wellness Serves North Carolina, South Carolina, and Virginia and expanding to Georgia, Tennessee, and Kentucky.
