Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Contributors
- Preface
- Foreword
- Abbreviations
- SECTION 1 Admission to Critical Care
- SECTION 2 General Considerations in Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- SECTION 3 System Management in Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- 3.1 CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM IN CARDIOTHORACIC CRITICAL CARE
- 3.2 RESPIRATORY SYSTEM IN CARDIOTHORACIC CRITICAL CARE
- 3.3 RENAL SYSTEM IN CARDIOTHORACIC CRITICAL CARE
- 3.4 HAEMATOLGY AND TRANSFUSION IN CARDIOTHORACIC CRITICAL CARE
- 3.5 GASTROINTESTINAL SYSTEM IN CARDIOTHORACIC CRITICAL CARE
- 3.6 IMMUNE SYSTEM AND INFECTION IN CARDIOTHORACIC CRITICAL CARE
- 39 The role of the immune system in critical illness
- 40 Sepsis and the systemic inflammatory response syndrome
- 41 Infection control
- 42 Infective endocarditis
- 3.7 ENDOCRINE SYSTEM IN CARDIOTHORACIC CRITICAL CARE
- 3.8 NEUROLOGICAL SYSTEM IN CARDIOTHORACIC CRITICAL CARE
- SECTION 4 Procedure-Specific Care in Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- SECTION 5 Discharge and Follow-up From Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- SECTION 6 Structure and Organisation in Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- SECTION 7 Ethics, Legal Issues and Research in Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- Appendix Works Cited
- Index
41 - Infection control
from 3.6 - IMMUNE SYSTEM AND INFECTION IN CARDIOTHORACIC CRITICAL CARE
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 July 2014
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Contributors
- Preface
- Foreword
- Abbreviations
- SECTION 1 Admission to Critical Care
- SECTION 2 General Considerations in Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- SECTION 3 System Management in Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- 3.1 CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM IN CARDIOTHORACIC CRITICAL CARE
- 3.2 RESPIRATORY SYSTEM IN CARDIOTHORACIC CRITICAL CARE
- 3.3 RENAL SYSTEM IN CARDIOTHORACIC CRITICAL CARE
- 3.4 HAEMATOLGY AND TRANSFUSION IN CARDIOTHORACIC CRITICAL CARE
- 3.5 GASTROINTESTINAL SYSTEM IN CARDIOTHORACIC CRITICAL CARE
- 3.6 IMMUNE SYSTEM AND INFECTION IN CARDIOTHORACIC CRITICAL CARE
- 39 The role of the immune system in critical illness
- 40 Sepsis and the systemic inflammatory response syndrome
- 41 Infection control
- 42 Infective endocarditis
- 3.7 ENDOCRINE SYSTEM IN CARDIOTHORACIC CRITICAL CARE
- 3.8 NEUROLOGICAL SYSTEM IN CARDIOTHORACIC CRITICAL CARE
- SECTION 4 Procedure-Specific Care in Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- SECTION 5 Discharge and Follow-up From Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- SECTION 6 Structure and Organisation in Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- SECTION 7 Ethics, Legal Issues and Research in Cardiothoracic Critical Care
- Appendix Works Cited
- Index
Summary
Introduction
Infection is a major cause of death and morbidity in hospitals. A large proportion of these infections are acquired in the hospital and the term ‘nosocomial infection’ refers to infection that was neither present nor incubating at the time of hospital admission, but acquired by the patient during his or her hospital stay. The risk of nosocomial infection in the critical care unit is particularly high, and the attributable morbidity, mortality and financial costs are substantial. It is often forgotten that critical care unit staff are also at risk of exposure to cross-infection and its negative consequences.
The goal of infection control is to identify, prevent and control nosocomial infections of patients and staff by implementing strategies based on sound scientific principles and epidemiologic techniques.
There is now good evidence supporting positive outcomes after implementation of several individual infection control procedures, and the implementation of a comprehensive infection control program that systematically incorporates individual components remains the best method for achieving positive outcomes.
Infection control program
An infection control team should be responsible for determining policies and procedures, and ensuring disciplined implementation. To achieve this, the membership of the team must include senior management, medical and nursing staff with sufficient authority to approve and implement policy.
The essential components of an infection control program are:
• Development and implementation of measures to prevent transmission of infectious agents and to reduce risks for device and procedure related infections.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Core Topics in Cardiothoracic Critical Care , pp. 318 - 325Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2008
- 1
- Cited by