ICU Infection
Most of the patients that are admitted to the ICU may already have an infection. Pneumonia, Urinary infection causing sepsis (sepsis), a wound that is infected, infection from a surgical site, etc. There are many more that could be mentioned, as this was just a few. As nurses and physicians, even the techs, x-ray techs, can help prevent the spread of infection. The CDC, strongly recommends that hand-washing is the #1 way to prevent the spread of infection.
Let’s take a look at some of the organisms that can survive in extreme heat and cold. C. difficult is one that is very common in ICU, and on the med/surgical floors. Without proper techniques and practices, C.diff can survive on surfaces for months to years. As health care professionals we have a responsibility to protect ourselves and our patients from contracting these diseases, especially when some of them come in with something else different. For C.diff there is a special product recommended by the CDC that is required by hospitals to help eliminate the organism from the surfaces in the patient’s rooms.