Prevention of Staph Infection

Preventing staph infection is a relatively easy thing to do if a person as the proper knowledge. One of the main preventative methods that patients can utilize in hospital settings is to make sure that the hospital staff washes their hands after they get done seeing patients. It is definitely okay to ask a staff member to wash his or her hands before they treat you if you aren’t sure that they have washed them already. Make sure that whoever treats you washes their hands in hot soapy water for around a minute before they touch you. Another thing to look out for is long fingernails. The main focus that people need to be aware of is total hygiene of the people that they are receiving care from. Also, hospital staff needs to be careful when treating patients so they don’t contract staph themselves and then transport it to another patient.

There are many precautions that can be taken to reduce the risk of getting a staph infection. One method of reducing the risk of an infection is wearing gloves when examining a patient. This is especially necessary when the patient is bleeding or has some other bodily fluid that the hospital employee will come into contact with. Even though the staff member wore gloves, it is still necessary for them to wash their hands after seeing a patient. Another method of prevention for hospital staff is wearing lab coats or some other article of clothing when they are with a patient. This will keep loose clothing, such as ties, away from the patients. If an employee doesn’t have a coat, they could use a gown instead. If a doctor or nurse uses any kind of instrument in the treatment of a patient make sure that they use proper handling methods in the disposal of those items. Proper handling involves making sure that the soiled instrument doesn't come into contact with the skin of the doctor or nurse, and that the staff member either puts the instrument in the proper disposal tray or that they put the tool someplace where it won't get used again until properly cleaned. One final precaution to use in the prevention of staph infection is to make sure that the work areas are cleaned properly. It is necessary to make sure that all the surfaces are cleaned thoroughly at the end of the day; an alcohol based cleaner is better for this than a soap based cleaner.

Above all, making sure that the hospital staff memebers practice proper hygiene is the best method of preventing staph infection.

Chris Arwood