Importance of Identifying and Managing Risks and Hazards associated with Clinical Infection

The principle of infection control is something that is becoming increasingly important in hospitals and healthcare settings. This is primarily because of hardship, and suffering it causes to the patient, who acquires an infection whilst in hospital, and because of the cost it brings to our already under funded hospitals from increased stays and healthcare workers falling ill.Infection Control Assignment Paper

The paper discusses the principal of infection control and, by demonstrating the effectiveness of techniques such as hand washing and universal precautions, determines its relevance.

Infection Control Practice

For some infection control is the latest buzzword in hospital wards, however, its significance is somewhat overlooked. Hospital acquired infections (HAI), which are a result of poor infection control account for around 10% in the UK. To date, there are no accurate figures for Ireland, but it is reckoned to be the same. According to Duffy et.al. (2002), a HAI is usually one that first appears three days after a patient is admitted into hospital. They are also called nosocomial infections. Germany differs somewhat to the occurrence of HAI’s as they have had a holistic strategy in hospital hygiene since 1976, which has resulted in the lowest rates of infection amongst patients compared with the rest of Europe (e.g. Germany 3.5%, France 6.7%, and UK 10%). It is because of infection control that since the beginning of the 20th century life expectancy has increased by 30 years along with life quality (Woodhead et.al, 2002, pp.241). The main reasons for these results are improvements of the economic situation of the population, housing and domestic settings, nutritional status, education, motivation to perform personal hygiene, centralized water and sewage systems, availability of highly efficient vaccines and discovery of new drugs.Infection Control Assignment Paper