Specialist High Skills Major

SHSM

Apprenticeship

College University

Workplace

Health and Wellness

All About Infections

Health and Wellness:

Infection Control & Prevention

Part 1

Infection Control and Prevention

A critical part of the Health Care industry.

Prevents the spread of infection within a health care setting.

Infection Control and Prevention includes:

Prevention

Surveillance

Management

of a demonstrated or suspected spread of infection.

Microorganisms and Infection

What is a microorganism?

•Microorganisms – tiny animals or plants found everywhere.

•Most are harmless!

•Also called Microbes

A small number of microbes have the ability to cause disease.

These are called Pathogens.

Microbial Growth

Microbes require the following conditions to grow:

1. A warm temperature

2. A proper ph level (a level of acidity or alkalinity)

3. A source of food

4. Moisture

5. Oxygen

Types of Microbes

4 major types of microbes are:

1. Bacteria- one-celled plants classified by their shape and alignment

2. Fungi- tiny plants that feed on dead matter (plant or animal)

3. Protozoa- tiny animals that live in contaminated water or decaying matter

4. Viruses- The smallest microbes that grow and live in other living cells.

What is Infection?

Infections occur when

pathogens

are able to increase in numbers

or colonize in a host

and thereby alter the function

of normal tissues and/or organisms of the host.

The Chain of Infection

There are 6 factors that happen in a cyclical pattern in the chain of infection:

Infectious Agent

Reservoir

Portal of Exit

Mode of Transmission

Portal of Entry

Susceptible Host

The Chain of Infection

There are 6 factors that happen in a cyclical pattern in the chain of infection:

1. Infectious Agent: Microbes / pathogens multiply and become virulent (or harmful)

2. Reservoir: A place where the proper conditions exist (warm, moist, food source, oxygen) for pathogens to grow. Reservoirs may be humans, animals, pools of water, insects, etc.

3. Portal of Exit: These are pathogen escape routes from a reservoir, allowing microbes to move.

The Chain of Infection (continued)

There are 6 factors that happen in a cyclical pattern in the chain of infection:

4. Mode of Transmission: The way in which pathogens travel or are transmitted from one source to the next, which may include touching, coughing, ingesting (eating), etc.

5. Portal of Entry: These are routes of Entry to a new source

6. Susceptible Host: The new source must have the conditions required to allow pathogens to multiply and become virulent.

Infections that can spread to other people are described as:

Contagious

Infection may be local at the site of an injury or generalized throughout the body.

Infections are systemic, meaning that local infections may cause general, harmful effects such as fever, swollen lymph nodes, loss of appetite and more.

Proper treatment of both local and general infections is critical to the overall and long-term health of the patient

Signs and symptoms that infection is present:

Signs and Symptoms of Infection

Redness

Swelling

Tenderness

Warmth

Drainage