Infectious safety is a system of measures ensuring the protection of health workers against infectious diseases. View details

The work of medical personnel is associated with an increased risk to health. Patients may become owners of dangerous diseases. In order to protect employees, the Ministry of Health has developed special measures. Infectious safety is a comprehensive approach to the organization of working conditions, eliminating accidental infection of personnel due to an accident, accident or other incidents.

The essence of protective measures

The protection algorithm has several subsections indicating the rules of behavior in a particular situation. Sanitary requirements include compliance with hygiene rules when working with tools, apparatus, and analysis. All unforeseen situations are taken into account when a person can get injured or make a mistake, after which the infection gets inside the body through the mouth or blood.

Anti-epidemic measures include actions aimed at preventing the group spread of the infection through the air, on contact from one person to another, through water or through ill-considered actions of the personnel or patient. The task of all procedures is to exclude the further development of morbidity in society. The first thing to do is to identify the source of the infection and narrow its scope of influence.

Measures to protect clinic staff from possible risks

Hand treatment is the main means for preserving the health of one's and others. There are three consecutive types of protection for people working in the risk zone:

• Preliminary treatment of hands, places of wounds and objects used for taking tests.
• The main disinfection measures aimed at the complete destruction of dangerous microorganisms.
• Final sterilization by reliable methods kills all microorganisms on objects and things.

Measures for disinfection include the treatment of surfaces and things in the following ways:

• Flushing the area of contact with a possible infection with boiling water. Hot water kills micro-organisms, flushes contaminants. Metal, glass and rubber objects are often treated.
• Steam disinfection is carried out at a temperature above 110 degrees Celsius.
• The use of chemical reagents does not require special installations. With such disinfection, additional washing with water from the residues of substances is necessary.

Checking the results of purification of medical devices

Prior to the main disinfection, preliminary cleaning of objects using chloramine or hydrogen peroxide is carried out. The composition of the solution is selected depending on the treatment method and the field of application of medical devices. The most concentrated mixture is created for objects that come into contact with the contents of the intestine.

The quality of the washed surface is determined by the results of the chemical reaction. Items painted in pink, purple or green indicate insufficient processing. The reaction involves particles of blood, detergent, and debris. The color of the reagent is read no later than 60 seconds after its application. Sanitary requirements oblige to use only completely sterile means. With any manifestation of color, repeated cleaning is carried out.

Anti-epidemic measures include all types of treatment using disposable protective equipment. Rubber gloves are used for insulation of hands , respiratory protection is protected by masks. Biomaterial sampling is carried out in a special room without drafts, where it is possible to destroy microorganisms by radiation.

Final processing of objects

Before re-use of medical devices, sterilization should be carried out. It includes measures for the destruction of microorganisms, fungi and viruses. As with disinfection, steam, solution and radiation treatment methods are used.

To carry out cleaning of premises, ultraviolet radiators are used, and smaller objects are exposed to gamma rays. Disease-causing microorganisms quickly die under the influence of chemicals. Specially equipped cabinets can create an airflow with a temperature of more than 140 degrees, ensuring an absolute sterilization of objects. Influence on infection by means of ultrasonic waves is also applied.

To ensure infection control, three types of diagnostics of the purity of the procedures are used. The first is carried out with the help of a substance sensitive to temperature, it is transformed into a liquid state under the influence of steam influence. The second method of control is based on a chemical reaction: starch and lagol lose their properties under the influence of temperature, the mixture becomes transparent.

Infection control of the third type provides for a long period of verification - about two days. The nutrient medium promotes the growth of microorganisms, a sample is placed in it from the object to be treated.

What are the risks?

Infectious safety is not only measures for clearing the space around the personnel of medical institutions, but also the statistics of accidents. As a result of the collection of information, a common approach to work in laboratories is developed, under which the guarantee of health preservation is ensured.

Provision of infectious safety is entrusted both to the heads of institutions and to the workers themselves. Personnel are brought to the methods of constant control of the purity of objects and premises, they become the main means of struggle in defense against dangerous microorganisms, viruses and fungi.

Infecting personnel with incurable diseases like HIV infection, hepatitis, herpes, is also at high risk of getting chlamydial complications.

The main attention is paid to medical means used for sampling biomaterials. Sharp and pricking objects require the most cautious handling with subsequent disposal from the place of work. Hand treatment is carried out both before the beginning of contact with the patient, and after the termination of all procedures.

Needles of syringes, droppers have internal cavities invisible to the eye, they contain particles of infected blood. Careless handling of the tool leads to unforeseen injuries and contamination. Scalpels, scissors, blades for puncturing the fingers are part of the danger group.

General rules for protection from infection

Infectious safety - these are activities of various types in the work of medical personnel. The most important are the following points:

• Rational use of the working space in compliance with fire safety rules;
• Norms for the operation of equipment, rules for the placement of facilities for disinfection and sterilization;
• Hygiene of hands, workplace, cleanliness of medical devices;
• Compliance with standards for cleaning objects, recycling of waste, storage of materials;
• Sanitary rules for the work of medical personnel.

Infectious safety of the patient should be carried out by the personnel of the clinic, in time before the procedures begin, all the necessary information is provided to him:

• Rules for blood sampling;
• Measures for the disposal of waste containing residues of biomaterial;
• Methods of using protective agents during the procedure;
• According to the results of the survey, if positive tests are found, infectious safety obliges immediately to inform about the infection of the patient so that he does not have time to transfer the virus to others.

What is included in the purification area?

The infectious safety of medical personnel involves the use of disposable means used for blood sampling. If this is not possible, all methods of cleaning sharp objects are used. Surgical needles, scalpels, and scissors are reusable.

Residues of infection can be in the air of the room after sampling the biomaterial. To protect the applied methods of cleaning with the help of infrared, ultraviolet exposure. Under the sterilization are personal belongings of the personnel of the clinic: a dressing gown, apron, shoes, headdress. It is not allowed in the laboratory to use telephones, shawls of reusable use, etc.

After receiving the patient, the workplace, equipment for treating or withdrawing blood, dressings are cleaned. The clinics are trying to use the latest scientific developments in the field of disinfection of stitching objects. These include ultrasonic washing or hermetic waste heaters. Special autoclaves were purchased for sterilization.

Purified objects are stored in a sealed enclosure with forced ventilation, equipped with decontaminating radiators. The air in the room is continuously cleaned by recirculation through reliable filters.

Principles of conduct during the performance of duties

Infectious safety in the work of a nurse provides for rational use of laboratory tools. Suspicion should cause every object in the room, which can get microorganisms even accidentally. The basis for the work is the following requirements for the performance of duties by personnel:

• Every clinic employee who has had contact with an infected hepatitis B virus by a person should make an appropriate vaccine;
• All patients are recognized as potential carriers of infection, so extreme precautions must be taken when working with them;
• All piercing and cutting tools should be replaced with safe analogs;
• Workers receive a full set of personal protective equipment, which is strictly required to be worn;
• The capacity for disposing of disposable products is located in the immediate vicinity of the site of sampling of the biomaterial;
• It is forbidden to remove needles by hand, for this there is a special tool;
• It is forbidden to close the point of the stitching objects with any materials prior to disposal into an appropriate container;
• Each container should not be filled more than 2/3 of its volume;
• Containers should be marked with standard inscriptions;
• The injury received during the work is classified as the production category, respectively, the direct supervisor should be dedicated to the course of events;
• You can not hide information about unintentional injuries, after the incident preventive measures are taken, even if the infection has not occurred;
• Having found out the risks of infection of patients or colleagues, should be reported to the management of the clinic and take the necessary measures to localize the source of danger.

What should every employee of a health care institution know and be able to do?

Infection safety in the health facility includes the training of personnel before the start of work. The staff of the clinic must pass a minimum course, including acquaintance:

• With infections, ways of their spread, ways of fighting them, methods of analysis.
• With the concepts of medical requirements, rules and norms of the maintenance of premises.
• With the latest versions of regulatory documents in the field of infection protection.
• With existing levels of hand treatment. Allocate social, hygienic and surgical. Each method is used for various types of medical personnel. Exception is made when there was a contact with the patient's biomaterial. Complete disinfection of the place of contact with the use of solutions: alcohol, chemical.

For the layman, the procedure for putting on gloves is not difficult. However, conventional methods of removing protective equipment are not suitable for use in the clinic. A whole instruction for the handling of protective equipment has been developed.

The consequences of careless attitudes to duties

Infectious safety are the rules, compiled from the results of numerous observations of long-term injuries and infection of medical personnel. The sad consequences come even after a long time. Because of an infected worker, his loved ones may suffer.

Strictly follow the principles of the developed methods - the duty of each health worker to protect both his health and patients of medical and preventive institutions. When transporting an infected person to a medical facility, disinfection of all things inside the cabin and stretcher is carried out on a specially designated site.

Clothing for examination of patients should be impregnated with a disinfectant. When a patient is found, a survey is conducted of all members of his family and relatives who have the opportunity to become infected. The staff of the clinic at the first suspicions, too, must pass the tests and undergo a survey.