Asepsis is the stat of being free from disease-causing contaminants

 

CONCEPT OF ASEPSIS:

       Asepsis is the stat of being free from disease-causing contaminants (such as bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites) or, preventing contract with micro-organisms. The  term asepsis often refers to those practices used to promote or induce asepsis in an operative field in surgery or medicine to prevent infection.

      Ideally ,a surgical field is “ sterile” meaning it is free of all biological contaminants, not just those that can cause disease, putrefaction, or fermentation ,but that is a situation  that is difficult to attain, especially given the patient is often a source of infections agents.

However ,elimination of infection is the goal of asepsis, not sterility.

   According to Ayliff   et al.(2000)suggest that there are two types of asepsis.

·         Medical asepsis: Medical or clean asepsis reduces the number of organisms and prevents their    spread ;medical asepsis(Clean technique )

All practices that reduce the dumber, growth, transfer and  spread of pathogenic micro organisms.

 They include hand washing, bathing cleaning environment ,gloving ,gowning ,earing mask, hair and hoe cover ,disinfecting articles and use of antiseptics.

·         Surgical Asepsis :

Surgical or sterile asepsis includes procedures to eliminate micro –organism from an area and is practiced by surgical technologists and nurses in operating theatres and treatment areas.

     Surgical asepsis(sterile technique ); practice that keep an area or objects free from all micro-organism non pathogenic and pathogenic including spores and viruses.

 

Isolation Precaution ,Barrier Nursing :

·         Isolation : isolation is the implementation of isolating precautions designed to prevent transmission of micro-organism by common routes in hospitals. Because agent and host factors are difficult to control, interruption of transfer of micro –organism is directed primarily at transmission 

 

Definition :

  Isolation refers to the precautions that  are taken in the hospital to prevent the spread of colonized patient to susceptible persons.

Isolation nursing prevent the spread of infection among patients,

·         It is termed source isolation because the patient is the source of infection .

·         By implementing precaution  to prevent the speed of infection.

·         These include hand washing, wearing gloves, wearing protective clothing disposal of linen and clinic waste, decontamination of equipment, and patient placement.

·         The principle of isolation nursing is to isolate the micro –organism not the patient.

·         Source isolation procedures are the outcome of a risk assessment ,which includes the source of infection, route of transmission and susceptibility of others.

·         Infected or colonized patients, carriers and  people incubating a disease may all as act as a source of infection.

·         The susceptibility of patients varies and will change throughout their stay in hospital .such factor include: age ,physical and psychological well-being, nutrition ,invasive devices and medications.

·         Isolation practices have evolved over the years. Change have been based on new epidemiological data,

·         Emergency of new or drug resistant organisms, and the need o protect patients and hospital personnel. The hospital personnel. The hospital infection control practices advises the need to update and revise guidelines and policies related to prevention of hospital acquired infections.

  Present Guidelines Distinguish Two Types of Isolation precautions:

1.      Standard precautions:   which synthesize major features of earlier practice of universal precautions and isolation of moist body substances.

2.      Transmission –based precaution : Based on routes of transmission, designed to be used together with the standard precautions, divided into the three subgroup of airborne, droplet and identified for disorders associated with a high index of suspicion for infection.

 

 

Transmission –based precaution are :

·         Air borne precautions:  Are used for clients known to have or suspected of having serious illness transmitted by airborne droplet nuclei smaller than 5 microns

E.g., varicella, tuberculosis,  measles.

·         Droplet precautions : Are used for clients  known or suspected to have serious illness transmitted than 5 microns

E.g., Diphtheria(pharyngeal ,mumps, pneumonia etc.,

·         Contact precautions: Are used for client know or suspected to have serious illness easily transmitted by direct contact or by contact with item in the client’s environment.

 

 

General principles of patient care :

·         In addition to the specific measures taken to prevent the spread of certain types of infectious diseases.

·         There are general principals that are basic to the care of any patient who is a source of infection to other or likely to become infected by coming in contact with others.

·         Factors most important in preventing spread of infection are proper disinfection techniques and conscientious hand washing.

·         The hand are used for many tasks in patient care and are therefore likely to be an excellent source of infection if they are not washed properly before and after each contact with the patient or with contaminated articles.

·         Protective isolation (reverse isolation ) a formerly common type of isolation designed to prevent contract between potentially pathogenic micro –organism and persons with seriously impaired resistance.

·         Social isolation a nursing diagnosis approved by the north American nursing diagnosis association defined as alone experienced by an individual as a negative or threatening state.

·         Contributing factors are many and varied and include delay in accomplishing developmental tasks, alterations in physical appearance or mental status, social behaviour or social values that are not accepted, inadequate personal resources, and inability to engage in satisfying personal relationships.