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HOLLAND
COLLEGE • April 29, 2003
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FEATURES
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| {Hand
washing key in preventing disease, says infection control officer  PHOTO:
Nursing Assistsnt learning manager Rachel Matheson demonstrates how
to wash your hands correctly to avoid the spread of infection.By Pam Bennett Surveyor staff On the bottom floor of the Queen Elizabeth Hospital sits a wing called Unit 6. It houses the offices of those who fight infections. Walking along the sunlit, glass hallway of the floor, it's difficult to miss the nice view of the outdoors. But turn left and two heavy glass doors surrounded by blue panels greet the rare visitor. Inside, a group of offices are set in a circle. Turn left and there's an office with a blue infection control sign hanging over the open doorway. Inside is a sink and a counter strewn with papers. Dead ahead is another door. It gives way to a large bookcase filled with books with titles like Eyesolution and Hospital Infections. To the right is Gail Barwise, in her white lab coat, sitting at a desk strewn with more papers and a computer. Her job is ensuring infections don't spread through the hospital. Until SARS, few people would have known her job even existed But now that severe acute respiratory syndrome is killing people around the world, with people in hospitals especially at risk, people are more concerned about their health and there's more call than ever to follow Health Canada guidelines, Barwise said. An infection occurs when a bacteria or virus enters a person's body and multiplies, she said. When an infection is suspected, a doctor must first assess the patient to determine what the problem could be. Blood is taken from the patient and brought to a lab where a technician tries to grow it in a dish to determine what type it is. Then it's surrounded with various antibiotics, said Barwise. From the lab report, a doctor can see what drug the infection resists and which work most effectively. This allows the doctor to administer the correct drug. Then, depending on the severity of the infection, a person is either quarantined or sent home. The problem with SARS is no one really knows what it is. "SARS is so new that you're writing your protocol as you go," said Barwise. "It's a whole new experience." But hospital staff do follow certain procedures when dealing with highly infectious diseases like tuberculosis and SARS. The No. 1 preventative measure is hand washing, Barwise said. "Everyone needs to wash their hands before and after bathroom use." Hospital workers try to protect their health and the health of others by washing their hands often. When a worker comes in contact with someone who has an infection, they must wash their hands before and after they see them to ensure the patient is safe, said Barwise. If someone changed a dressing then saw another patient and put their infected hands on them, the patient is at risk for infection. But it doesn't end there. Clothing is also important, said Barwise. Gowns, gloves and masks are used when the infection calls for it. In SARS cases, when someone thinks they have it, they are encouraged to call ahead to let the hospital know they are coming so a staff member can be outside waiting for them, she said. When the patient arrives, the employee who greets them is masked and gives a mask to the patient. This ensures the disease doesn't spread in the hospital, said Barwise. If the person doesn't call ahead, they mask the patient and the staff member and isolate the patient in a room. At the Queen Elizabeth Hospital rooms are equipped with pressurization controls which ensure infections stay within the room or are pumped out. The system is set at negative or positive. The positive setting ensures no infections enter a patient's room. The negative setting ensures infections are whisked away away from the hospital, so they can't re-enter through the ventilation system. With SARS, a 10-day quarantine is required and medication is administered if necessary. Treatment is up to the physican, she said. Staying ahead of highly infectious diseases is difficult because organisms evolve making drugs less effective, said Barwise. The best way to prevent contracting a highly infectious disease is through the following steps: wash your hands frequently; don't share cigarettes, drinks or other personal items; keep up of your immunizations; and follow travel advisories issued by Health Canada. Rachel Matheson is a learning manager in the nursing assistant program at Holland College in Charlottetown. She said the prevention of infections starts with good personal hygeine. "The biggest thing though is hand washing, hand washing, hand washing." A balanced diet, exercise, a good night's sleep and low stress levels are keys to a strong immune system, she said. If the immune system is stressed, it leaves a person open to infections. Matheson said infections attack in a variety of ways: through the air, water and by touch. Infections can travel through the air, in mosquitoes, and through simple coughing and touching. But there are things nurses do to protect themselves from infection. "What we want to do is break the chain of infection," she said. Nursing assistants disinfect rooms. They wear protective attire such as gloves, masks and gowns. They double-bag linens which have been used by an infected patient and wash their hands for at least three minutes. But there's never any question of not going into a room to help someone who is sick. Infected patients deserve to be treated, she said. "Just because they have a high infection, you don't just set them aside and not treat them." Dr. Lamont Sweet, the chief health officer for P.E.I., said with a highly contagious disease like SARS, hospital employees must be careful. The staff must wear a special mask called a N95 mask, as stated in Health Canada guidelines, and the patient must wear a surgical mask to reduce the chances of further transmission of the disease. If the patient must stay in the hospital, precautions must be taken with the handling of body fluids. Nasal discharge and fluids from the lungs hold the virus and can cause infection, he said. "But these are the same type of precautions you would take for any highly contagious respiratory disease." Sweet said the biggest difference is the quarantine. SARS patients must stay isolated for 10 days as this is believed to be the incubation period. And people who think something like SARS won't affect them here are mistaken, he said. P.E.I. is part of the international travel scene. So far, there have been just a handful of suspected cases. He predicts it's just a matter of time until SARS really arrives. "We'd be extremely fortunate not to get more." } |
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