The last thing that patients can expect when going to the hospital for treatment is a hospital-acquired infection. The healthcare professionals have played a key role in ensuring that such incidences do not arise by adhering to the evidenced-based control policies that have been put in place ( Ghadmgahi et al., 2011). Some 0plans have been set by the nursing profession and healthcare sector to ensure that hospital-acquired infection does not arise. These policies have greatly assisted the nurses in minimizing the chances of the patients getting infections while at the hospitals. Some of the current evidence-based infection control policies include maintaining a clean healthcare environment, wearing protective clothing, practicing appropriate hand washing, and using barrier precautions. Many researchers have shown that these policies can help prevent the patients from getting infections while at the healthcare facilities. Therefore, nurses have been encouraged to adhere to these policies at all times while they are on duty to ensure there is effective infection control.
EBP Policies on Infection Control
The EBP policies and procedures for infection control require that staff be educated and trained on the best methods to prevent infections. Training involves the presence of an infection control expert, necessary facilities and a dedicated budget as well as staff time to ensure that they are well equipped with the knowledge on infection control. Another requirement in the infection control as an EBP is the hand hygiene. All the healthcare workers including those in charge of handling food items need to understand and adhere to the right method of hand cleaning. These include the correct ways of cleaning hands, when to clean, and what detergents to use. At all times, the infection prevention staff must monitor to ensure that appropriate hand cleaning technique is adhered to by employees. The policy also requires that a nurse must not use more than one medical device on the same patient as this could increase the chances of infections. For the methods that must be reused, the staff must adhere to the disinfection sterilization guidelines. Other requirements to promote infection control are kitchen sanitation. Foods that are unsafe could cause risks of infection to the patients and measures must be taken into place to ensure that there are proper sanitation conditions in the kitchen to enhance the safe handling of food.
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Recommended Policy Updates
In the recommended updates, immunization programs should be introduced for both the residents and staff. This will help prevent infections which could arise when an individual who has an infectious disease visits a health center or when a nurse who has a communicable illness handles a patient. The healthcare facilities can also have clear policies and practices that will promote antimicrobial stewardship. This will help minimize the ever-growing incidences of resistance to antibiotics among the residents and can result in the transmission of infection to other patients at the hospital. The nurses should also be appropriately trained in the management of possible exposures to bloodborne pathogens such as needles and other sharp objects. In many cases, the healthcare professionals have been infected due to inappropriate handling of sharp objects containing blood from other patients. These infections can be prevented from spreading through the immunization programs for both the staff and residents so that such infectious diseases are prevented as early as possible.
Theory, Research, and Practice in Nursing
Nursing theory refers to a structure of ideas projecting a purposeful and systematic phenomenon. Based on the theory, nurses can form relevant knowledge for improving the patients care. Nursing theory aims to provide the principles through which nurses can rely on to generate further knowledge on nursing. The nursing theory provides the nurses with a sense of identity thus making them be recognized for their significant contribution to the nursing field. Research, on the other hand, provides sufficient evidence to support the nursing practices. The purpose of study in nursing is to provide proof of specific nursing practice and its relevance to the field of nursing. Nurses have been spending a lot of time and resources in research to help provide more evidence on specific practices that aims at promoting patients care. The quantitative research relies on logic as well as the patients’ outcomes which can be measured and usually based on statistics that can be confirmed. Qualitative research, on the other hand, relies on grounded theory as well as the experience from the nursing practice.
Nursing Theory on Infection Control
On the nursing theory related to the infection prevention as an EBP, Faye Abdellah referred to nursing as a service to the individuals and families where he identified 21 nursing problems in his nursing theory. Some of the nursing problems mentioned by Faye were to promote good hygiene and comfort, to promote optimal activity and to enhance the safety of the patients through the prevention of the spread of infections ( Ward, 2013 ). In his nursing theory, infection prevention and control is mentioned as one of the problems that nurses will have to deal with if they are to provide the best services to the patients. This nursing theory focuses on the role of nurses in solving the nursing problems that have been identified, with the critical motive being to prevent the spread of infection and improve the health outcome of individuals.
Research Articles
Alves, A. I. G., Rabiais, I C. M., Viveiros, A. M., & Freitas, C. M. R. (2016). Prevention and Control of Infection: An Advanced Nursing Practice. International Journal of Nursing, 3(1), 81-88.
This article represents research that was done to clarify the importance of the prevention and control of infection in nursing as a profession. The authors of the article in the research note that there are challenges in ensuring that all the nurses adhere to the prevention and control policies as some could assume their responsibility. The way each healthcare professional understands the control policies and guidelines is the determinant of how they adhere to these policies. Despite the presence of infection control guidelines, the hospital-acquired infection has continued to exist. An analysis should be done on how professional understand these policies and measures taken to promote adherence to the infection prevention and control policies (ALVES et al., 2016).
The authors of the article have adopted a set of beliefs and philosophical assumptions to inform the research. The methodology was based on the systematic review of ten pieces of literature that have been used in the practice of evidence-based to gather and make a summary of the research results. The method utilized by the researchers was based on the PICO strategy. The authors of the article also created and nurtured a research environment in a way that promotes the ethical standards and development of science. There was no any breach of ethical standards in the way data was collected or analyzed.
Fashafsheh, I., Ayed, A., Eqtait, F., & Harazneh, L. (2015). Knowledge and Practice of Nursing Staff towards Infection Control Measures in the Palestinian Hospitals. Journal of Education and Practice, 6(4), 79-90.
The authors of the article note that healthcare professionals, as well as patients, are constantly subjected to high risks of being exposed to infections from microorganisms. The researchers conduct quantitative research by doing a cross-sectional study to assess the level at which nurses in government hospitals are knowledgeable and practice infection control. The research acknowledges that nurses must strictly adhere to the infection control policies if they are to help control the level of infection in the public hospitals.
The authors of the article adopted a methodological perspectives perspective in their research by conducting a cross-sectional study in the governmental hospitals in Palestine. Data was collected from various ward departments including ICU, ER and surgical wards. The study used a sample of 300 nurses who participated in the questionnaires. Philosophical assumptions were made to form the basis of the research. The researchers adhered to the ethical and scientific considerations of the research as no one was forced to take part in the questionnaires. Being selected as a respondent in the study was optional, and one had the decision to refuse. The results of the study, however, revealed that 53% of the respondents had reasonable knowledge level while 91% practice infection control (Fashafsheh et al., 2015). Continuous education and training on the importance of infection control as an EBP are however essential in preventing any infections in the hospitals. Utilization of this research helped advance my nursing knowledge by increasing my understanding of the importance of practicing infection control and prevention as an EBP.
References
Alves, A. I. G., Rabiais, I. C. M., Viveiros, A. M., &Freitas, C. M. R. (2016). Prevention and Control of Infection: An Advanced Nursing Practice . International Journal of Nursing, 3(1), 81-88.
Fashafsheh, I., Ayed, A., Eqtait, F., & Harazneh, L. (2015). Knowledge and Practice of Nursing Staff towards Infection Control Measures in the Palestinian Hospitals. Journal of Education and Practice, 6(4), 79-90.
Ghadmgahi, F., Zighaimat, F., Ebadi, A., & Houshmand, A. (2011). Knowledge, Attitude and Self-efficacy of Nursing Staffs in Hospital Infections Control. Journal Mil Med , 13 (3), 167-172.
Ward, D. J. (2013). The Application of the Theory of Planned Behavior to Infection Control Research with Nursing and Midwifery Students . Journal of clinical nursing , 22 (1-2), 296-298.
