Knowledge, Attitude and Utilization of Aseptic Technique by Health Workers
Aseptic technique is a process performed under sterile conditions most commonly used
in medical, laboratory and hospital operation settings. Its purpose is to minimize
patients’ exposure to hospital micro-organisms as much as possible and prevent
their contamination of wounds and other susceptible sites that could lead to infection.
All medical equipment and fluids are sterilized by the scrub nurses and surgical
technologists before medical procedures to ensure sterility in the clinical setting.[1]
Considerable morbidity and mortality can result if aseptic techniques are poorly
adhered to. Health care facilities should establish policy and procedures on aseptic
techniques and health workers performing them should be trained and should
demonstrate competency.[2]
Since the patient is the most common source of pathogens that cause infections in
the surgical site, the latter should be cleansed thoroughly before clinical operation.
Sterile surgical fields with drapes should be created to maintain asepsis in the operating
room or for other invasive processes.[3]
Medical equipment and supplies should be sterilized by chemical treatment, radiation,
gas or heat. In the sterile field, all items must be sterile and only scrubbed personnel
must be allowed into it. Clinical areas outside of the operating room should observe
medical aseptic practices to help avoid nosocomial infections. All personnel in a
multidisciplinary setting must constantly monitor their actions, those of others and
the overall status of the field to prevent possible breaks in sterility techniques.[4]
Infection control programs in medical centers have been proven to reduce infection
rates. Its components include conducting control procedures, trained infection
control physician and nurse and a monitoring system of infection rates for clinical care
staff.[5] The first line of defense for daily infection control application belong to the clinical
care staff and other health care workers.[6]
Simple hand washing using antiseptic hand soaps and alcohol-based hand rubs have
been proven to reduce bacterial hand contamination in health workers in hospital
settings, which in turn will minimize patient infections. The inconsistency of this
mandatory practice in resource-poor areas of the world, such as in Pakistan, continues
to be a challenge. Poor practice of hand hygiene and inadequate attention to basic
infection-control measures have been observed in hospitals lacking in nursing
personnel and have patient overcrowding. Health workers should also properly use
personal protective equipment including gloves, gowns and face mask to minimize
mutual organism transmission between patient and health care worker.[7]
Health workers are commonly highly educated and knowledgeable in aseptic
techniques, but studies have shown that they do not apply proper practice consistently.[8]
Reasons given for this inconsistency include perceived time constraints, inconvenience,
and presumption of the patient not being infected. Consistency is found to be directly
proportional to the years of health care experience.[9]
There is a need for periodic evaluation of infection control practices to encourage health
workers to report adverse events that can be prevented in the future, to hold them
responsible for their daily practices and to institute improvements in the system.[10]
There is also a need for regular environmental cleaning and disinfection of the clinical
setting by a team of surgical and environmental services personnel to reduce the dust,
organic debris and microbial load that accumulates there.[11]
[1] “Aseptic Technique”, Wikipedia, 15 February 2011, <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aseptic_technique>
[accessed 29 April 2011]
[2] “Aseptic Techniques”, Scribd., 2011, <http://www.scribd.com/doc/35140496/Aseptic-Techniques>
[accessed 29 April 2011]
[3] “Aseptic Technique”, Scribd, 2011, <http://www.scribd.com/doc/47586365/Aseptic-technique>
[accessed 29 April 2011]
[4] ibid
[5] Amy S. Collins, “Chapter 41 Preventing Health Care-Associated Infections”, Bookshelf, 2006
<http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK2683/> [accessed 29 April 2011]
[6] ibid
[7] ibid
[8] ibid
[9] ibid
[10] ibid
[11] Kelly M. Pyrek, “Breaches in the OR: The Perioperative and Infection Prevention Challenge”,
Infection Control Today, 10 March 2011, <http://www.infectioncontroltoday.com/articles/2011/03/breaches-and-best-practices-in-the-or.aspx>
[accessed 29 April 2011]
Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com
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