Mrs. Boyce
Advanced Composition
24 October 2016
The Fight of Infection Throughout healthcare fields, infection and infection control is a major issue. Every health oriented procedure or process requires strict attention towards infection, and ways in which to prevent infections. The actions performed during any healthcare procedure directly impacts whether or not infection may occur. Infection can ruin a person’s life in a split second, especially those who are susceptible because of a decreased immune system. Throughout the United States, intense preventative methods are practiced to decrease the amount of nosocomial infections. Currently, the United States sets guidelines and policies in which are supposed to be followed …show more content…
“In 1976, the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations published accreditation standards for infection control, creating the impetus and need for hospitals to provide administrative and financial support for infection control programs” (CDC. “Nosocomial Infection - a Historical Perspective (1998)”). Through the funding provided, infection control should be superb, yet “a third of nosocomial infections are preventable” (Inweregbu, Dave, and Pittard. "Nosocomial Infections."). The Center for Disease Control has set guidelines that include environmental factors, hand hygiene, and sterilization for healthcare facilities. Throughout these guidelines, every situation that may occur in a healthcare facility is outlined, and the way in which the person should go about the situation. The guidelines are detailed and outlined in an easy to read pattern, which any person can understand. These guidelines are just one of the abundant programs provided to healthcare facilities around the world. The programs currently are supposed to “set relevant national objectives consistent with other national health care objectives, develop a national system to monitor selected infections and assess the effectiveness of interventions, and facilitate access to materials and products essential for hygiene and safety” …show more content…
This knowledge needs to be taught by an infection control committee, which should be developed by the main senior authorities, such as the administrator. This committee needs to be a diverse group of people that hold a different occupation, through jobs such as nurses, physicians, pharmacists, etc. ("Prevention of Hospital-acquired Infections."). One of the key issues that needs to be solved through this committee is that the guidelines and policies presented are properly follow and not forgotten. “Measures of infection control include identifying patients at risk of nosocomial infections, observing hand hygiene, [and] following standard precautions” (Mehta "Guidelines for Prevention of Hospital Acquired Infections."). “Good infection control measures are often simple practical interventions” (Beckford-Ball "The Control and Prevention of Hospital-acquired Infections."). Consequently, healthcare workers of a lesser role must have a reporting relationship with those of a superior role. National and Local programs throughout healthcare facilities, must be a communicative team day-to-day to ensure that patient care is