LVN Term 1 - ATI Infection Control Pretest

Face & eye protection

* goggles, shields, safety glasses, full-face respirators. * provide a barrier to infectious substances and are typically used in conjunction with other personal protective equipment such as gloves, gown, and masks.

Respirators (airborne precautions)

* use for case-specific procedures where particulates and secretions create a high risk of infection for the healthcare worker. (TB) * N95/HEPA respirator meets OSHA minimum requirements. - filter 95% of 0.3 µm particles * used to enter rooms of patients with airborne diseases must be approved by this agency

A nurse is caring for a client who has a health care-associated infection (HAI). Which of the following describes an exogenous HAI?

A Salmonella infection that occurs after eating contaminated food from the cafeteria. An exogenous HAI is an infection acquired from pathogens found outside of the client's body, such as in contaminated food.

PPE (personal protective equipment)

A barrier between a person and pathogens; includes gloves, gowns, masks, goggles, and face shields

A nurse is about to irrigate a client's open wound. Besides gloves, which of the following personal protective equipment should the nurse wear?

A face shield - protects the face, mouth, nose, and eyes from any potential splashes of blood, body fluids, and tissues particles onto the nurse's face.

Irritant Contact Dermatitis

Abbreviated ICD; occurs when irritating substances temporarily damage the epidermis. Hands become dry, itchy, and irritated.

How long can influenza viruses survive outside a host?

At room temperature, with moderate humidity, these viruses can live 24 to 48 hours on steel and plastic, and 8 to 12 hours on cloth and facial tissues.

What if the client who is on droplet precautions has a prescription for a diagnostic test?

Clients who are on droplet precautions should be transported out of the room only when necessary. If the client needs to leave the room, place a surgical mask on the client. Maintain 3 feet between the client and other individuals. Communicate the client's required precautions to other departments.

Transmission-based precautions

Contact Precautions Droplet Precautions Airborne Precautions

What should the nurse do to maintain standard precautions?

Disinfect hands immediately after removing gloves. It is an essential component of standard precautions to disinfect hands immediately after glove removal, which often occurs at the end of an client-care procedure, and hand hygiene is mandated between client contacts. Hand hygiene is required in case the integrity of each glove has been breached, power or other residue remains on the nurse's hands, or the nurse's hands have been contaminated during glove removal.

To decontaminate their hands with an alcohol-based gel, the nurse should rub their hands together until all of the gel has evaporated and their hands are dry. Which of the following is the correct rationale for why hands should be rubbed together until dry?

Drying provides the full antiseptic effect. A dry environment offers better protection against the proliferation of pathogens than a moist environment does. The bactericidal alcohol components of these gels further enhance their superior antiseptic effect.

Are artificial nails acceptable in health care facilities?

Evidence shows that health care workers wearing artificial nails carry more pathogens on their nails than other health care workers. The effectiveness of hand hygiene is reduced. The DCD, The Joint Commission, and the American Association of Operating Room Nurses recommend prohibiting the wearing of artificial nails.

Protective environment

Focuses on clients w/ transplants or gene therapy; positive airflow (>12 exchanges/hour) and HEPA filtration for incoming air. No fresh flowers or potted plants in their rooms

Projectile vomiting

Forcefully transports body fluid and any infectious micro-organisms it may contain out into the environment, where it has the added potential for cross-contamination of other people and object.

After completing a procedure that required donning personal protective equipment (PPE) consisting of a gown, an N95 respirator, a face shield, and gloves, which of the following should the nurse remove first when removing PPE separately?

Gloves Gloves are considered the most contaminated and should be removed first, followed by face /eye protection, gown, and mask /respirator.

Contact precautions should be implemented for an adult client who has been hospitalized and has which of the following?

Infectious diarrhea Contact precautions are essential for preventing the spread of certain enteric infections. These precautions mean no direct touching of the client, the environment, the equipment, or the supplies used. The client should also be placed in a private room.

How far can a virus-laden droplet travel and still be a potential source of infection?

It can travel up to 3 feet in any direction and still be infectious.

Which of the following is an advantage of using alcohol-based gel?

Its use takes less time than washing with soap and water does. During an 8-hr shift, an estimated 1 hr of an intensive care unit nurses time is saved by performing hand hygiene with an alcohol-based gel.

N95 respirator

Mask with small, tightly woven pores that protects the wearer from airborne infection.

Contact Precautions

Methods of infection control must be used for patients known or suspected to be infected with epidemiological microorganisms that can be transmitted by either direct or indirect contact. Private room and dedicated or disposable equipment (minimizes cross-contamination) Examples: VRE, MRSA< C.difficile, wound infections, and herpes simplex, diarrhea, and vomit

Airborne Precautions

Methods of infection control that must be used for patients known or suspected to be infected with pathogens transmitted by airborne droplet nuclei. Negative airflow room (Protects the nurse and others), N95 respirator Example: pulmonary tuberculosis, measles, varicella

Droplet Precautions

Methods of infection control that must be used for patients known or suspected to be infected with pathogens transmitted by large-particle droplets expelled during coughing, sneezing, talking, or laughing. Use a surgical mask, proper hand hygiene, some dedicated care equipment. Examples: influenza or Mycoplasma pneumonia, rubella, mumps, streptococcal infections.

How long can fingernails be?

Nails should extend no more than 1/4 inch past the nail bed. Specific are should be take to clean the underside thoroughly. Artificial nails should be avoided.

Are prescription eyeglasses or contact lenses an acceptable form of eye protection?

No. Neither eyeglasses nor contact lenses provide enough coverage to prevent infectious disease (splashes) via ocular exposure and transmission.

When without a handkerchief or a facial tissue, is it appropriate to "sneeze into your sleeve"?

Oddly enough, yes. This reduces the transmission of airborne infection.

Which of the following products can affect the permeability of latex gloves?

Petroleum-based hand lotion The use of petroleum-based hand lotions or creams can impair the integrity of latex gloves, weakening them and increasing their permeability.

A nurse is caring for a client who has Mycoplasma pneumoniae. The client has been placed on droplet precautions. Which of the following actions should the nurse take when caring for the client?

Protect their eyes. Droplet transmission involves contact of infectious, large-particle droplets with the conjunctivae or the mucous membranes of the nose or mouth of a susceptible person. Droplets are generated by the client during coughing, sneezing, or talking and during procedures such as suctioning and bronchoscopy.

Hand Hygiene (Hand Washing)

Single most important and basic preventive technique that health care workers can use to interrupt the infectious process.

Clostridium difficile (C-diff)

Spore forming bacterium which can be part of the normal intestinal flora

How can I protect elderly clients and other immunocompromised clients from health care associated infections?

Standard precautions should be used with all clients to prevent the spread of pathogens.

contact transmission

Transmission of an infectious agent by direct contact of the source (contaminated object) or its reservoir (susceptible host) with the host.

Standard Precautions

Universal Precautions To reduce the risk of transmission of micro-organisms from both recognized and unrecognized sources of infection in health care settings. Hand hygiene Gloves, masks, eye protection, and gowns.

A nurse is washing their hands with soap and water prior to repositioning a client in bed. During the handwashing procedure, it is important to take which of the following actions?

Wash for at least 15 seconds. Handwashing with nonantimicrobial soap and water for at least 15 seconds reduces bacterial counts and can remove loosely adherent transient flora. the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends rubbing hands together vigorously for at least 15 seconds, covering all surfaces of the hands and fingers.

After assisting a newly admitted client with removing their shoes and outerwear, the nurse notices what appears to be soil or grime on their hands. Which of the following actions should the nurse take?

Wash their hands with soap and water. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends washing with soap and water whenever hands are visibly dirty. In this case, it is the combination of friction, running water, and the properties of soap that remove the soil from the hands.

Latex allergy

allergic reaction to natural rubber latex * Irritant contact dermatitis * Allergic contact dermatitis (delayed hypersensitivity) * Latex allergy

Latex Allergy

allergic reaction to natural rubber latex Mild reactions: redess, hives, and itching Severe reactions: runny nose, sneezing, itchy eyes, scratchy throat, asthma (difficulty breathing, coughing spells, wheezing), and anaphylactic shock.

Chemical-Sensitivity Dermatitis

an allergic contact dermatitis Symptoms: begin 24-48 hrs after contact, similar to those cause by poison ivy. Cause by: chemicals added to latex during harvesting, processing, or manufacturing.