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.