We’ve all had some kind of infection or the other in our lives; coughs, colds, measles or even conjunctivitis. They are actually illnesses that are transmitted via germs; these germs create an infection on or in us. These are minor infections that come and go quickly. Infection The real problem lies with people who work in hospitals or in medical units. They are around and have to touch people who carry infections all day long.

Even patients who are getting treated at medical units and hospitals could be prone to infections, especially the ones who have a low immune system. There are a number of ways infections are transmitted and there are a number of ways we can prevent them from reaching us. Let’s look at a few ways infections spread.

– Airborne – one of the most common airborne infections is the chicken pox virus. As children, we all have been bedridden because of chicken pox, at least once.

– Droplet spread – Haven’t you heard your mother tell you umpteen times to cover your mouth while you sneeze or cough? One of the main reasons for doing this is to curb the spread of such illnesses.

– Direct contact – simply put, if you touch someone who has an infection, it passes on to you.

– Indirect contact – infections cause by contaminated equipment.

There are a number of things that can be done by medical units and hospitals to reduce the spread of infections.

– As soon as a new member of staff joins, they need to be put through a battery of tests to ensure that they have high immunity levels. They also need to be checked in case they are carrying any infections.

– Your hands come in contact with a lot of things, people, surfaces and chemicals. Keep washing them at regular intervals with antiseptic soap and running water. Before and after you come in contact with patients or touch any surfaces, wash your hands again. Hand hygiene is of utmost importance.

– A hospital is known for its cleanliness. Every hospital these days has an Infection Control Team. This team makes sure that every ward has a housekeeper that ensures that the ward remains spotlessly clean, literally! The areas around the bed and the place where visitors can come and meet the patients is kept under strict supervision. There absolutely no chance of an unhygienic environment there.

– In case there is an outbreak of a certain infection, that area is closed and kept under strict supervision, also known as quarantine. This ensures that the infection is controlled in the quickest possible way.

– Any kind of medical equipment or machine is cleaned regularly. The cleaning also involves checking if it works too. The medical staff that are trained to use the equipment also bring it to their superiors notice if its malfunctioning. Hygienically cleaning all the equipment is extremely important. Infections can get transmitted easily by contaminated equipment easily.

– Any hospital or medical unit encourages its staff to use protective gear. Gowns, masks, gloves or aprons all of it is available in the hospital. The staff is also given strict instructions to responsibly discard used or contaminated protective gear.

Every hospital and medical unit takes great care in keeping infections at bay. It is a matter of reputation for them too.

For more information, please visit our infection control training website.

For more information, please visit our infection control training website http://www.infectioncontrolexams.com

Author Bio: For more information, please visit our infection control training website.

Category: Wellness, Fitness and Diet
Keywords: disease,micro-organism ,measles,Conjunctivitis,Infection Control Training