This can be defined as “an infection occurring in a patient
during the process of care in a hospital or other healthcare facility, which was not present or incubating at the time of admission.” This includes infections acquired in the hospital but appearing after discharge and also occupational infections amongst staff of the facility.
A healthcare-associated infection
It is also known as hospital-acquired infections. It is an infection that is acquired in a hospital or other health care facility. These do not occur only with patients, but also with healthcare workers that are continuously exposed to such biological hazards.
Nosocomial infections
Ventilator-associated pneumonia, Staphylococcus aureus, Canidida albicans, Tuberculosis, Urinary tract infections, Gastroenteritis
Known nosocomial infections
Most common known nosocomial infection
Urinary tract infections
What causes nosocomial infections?
improperly sterilized or unsterilized healthcare
equipment
Urinary tract infections can arise from—?
reused urinary catheters
Candida albicans yeast infections can occur from—?
improperly sterilized gynecological equipment
Pneumonia can occur from—?
improperly sterilized ventilators or air conditions
- It is a bacterium responsible for several difficult-to-treat infections in humans.
- It is also called multidrug-resistant Staphylococcus aureus or oxacillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (ORSA).
- It is any strain of Staphylococcus aureus that has developed resistance to beta-lactam antibiotics, which include the penicillins (methicillin, dicloxacillin, nafcillin, oxacillin, etc.) and the cephalosporins.
Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA)
Strains unable
to resist these antibiotics: penicillins (methicillin, dicloxacillin, nafcillin, oxacillin, etc.) and the cephalosporins are classified —-?
Methicillin-sensitive Staphylococcus aureus, or MSSA
- This refers to any pneumonia contracted by a patient in a hospital at least 48-72 hours after being admitted.
- It is usually caused by a bacterial infection, rather than a virus.
- It is the second most common nosocomial infection (urinary tract infection is the most common), and accounts for 15-20% of the total.
- It is the most common cause of death among nosocomial infections, and is the primary cause of death in intensive care units.
Hospital-acquired pneumonia (HAP), or nosocomial pneumonia
These are related to bloodborne transmission of diseases arising from sharps injuries from contaminated used needles.
Sharps-associated infections
Some bloodborne pathogens:
- Hpatitis B virus (HBV),
- Hepatitis C virus (HCV)
- Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV)
[Bloodborne pathogens in sharps-associated infections]
Risk of infection may cary with factors such as these:
- The pathogen involved
- The type of exposure
- The amount of blood involved in the exposure
- The amount of virus in the patient’s blood at the time of exposure
These are the most common vehicle of microorganisms causing HAI.
Healthcare workers’ (HCWs’) hands
The Five Sequential Steps for Cross-Transmission of Microbial Pathogens
- Organisms are present on the patient’s skin or have been shed onto inanimate objects
immediately surrounding the patient - Organisms must be transferred to the hands of healthcare workers
- Organisms must be capable of surviving for at least several minutes on healthcare workers’ hands
- Handwashing or hand antisepsis by the healthcare worker must be inadequate or omitted entirely, or the agent used for hand hygiene inappropriate
- The contaminated hand(s) of the caregiver must come into direct contact with another patient or with an inanimate object that will come into direct contact with the patient
