Nurses, doctors and other healthcare professionals have been put on high alert recently, this being occasioned by an upsurge of healthcare-associated infections. The fact that people get infected in hospitals while they are being treated has caused alarm among healthcare givers and now concerted efforts are being aimed at enhancing patient safety. This is seen as a major step towards controlling healthcare-associated infections.
To say that the situation needs urgent attention is to understate it. From the department of health, statistics suggest that a tenth of patients being admitted in hospitals attract the HAI. Consequently, victims of HAI spend additional time in the hospital, and the time is estimated to be three times longer than patients who have not contracted HAI. Since the patients have to stay longer in hospitals, they have to part with more money for their medical expenses.
It is for this reason that the concept of safety for patients has gained popularity. As a result, medical facilities have been pressured to provide environments that protect their patients from HAI. Therefore, major health institutions have embarked on deliberate efforts to curb the situation that is threatening to be rampant.
Doctors have discovered that a simple way of keeping tabs on healthcare-associated infections is by controlling the occurrence of VTE (Venous Thromboembolism). The condition may sometimes cause serious discomfort but no major complications. However, it is known to be very dangerous at times and is considered one of the leading causes of easily preventable deaths in healthcare institutions.
The other way of dealing with these infections is through timelines and goals, which help medical practitioners to stay focused. Also, it enables them to maintaining high levels of communication during the time of treatment. It includes first agreeing on the general goals. The goals need to be adequately aggressive to sanction a shift in design. Setting goals from the onset is important because it helps in minimizing cases of HAI.
Patient education regarding the proper use of blood thinners is also very important in curbing this menace. It is a common practice for patients who have been operated to be given new blood thinner prescriptions. The importance of blood thinners is that they help patients from being attacked with dangerous clots. However, improper use of these can be catastrophic in that they will tend to develop uncontrollable bleeding. When this happens, drug event may follow.
The solution lies in educating them on the proper use of blood thinners. It can be done by means of a video tutorial which only lasts 10 minutes as well as 24-page booklet. With these, patients should be able to understand what they can expect by taking these drugs.
Limiting the lengths of shifts of resident doctors can also help. A doctor who works longer will be more fatigued and therefore more error prone. Medical staffs should be rested and stick to working 80 hours a week. For instance, those working on a rotating shift of 30 hours must only be allowed to attend to patients for sixteen hours. In between, they should sleep for at least 5 hours. Only then can they perform at their optimum level and provide high standards of patient safety.
To say that the situation needs urgent attention is to understate it. From the department of health, statistics suggest that a tenth of patients being admitted in hospitals attract the HAI. Consequently, victims of HAI spend additional time in the hospital, and the time is estimated to be three times longer than patients who have not contracted HAI. Since the patients have to stay longer in hospitals, they have to part with more money for their medical expenses.
It is for this reason that the concept of safety for patients has gained popularity. As a result, medical facilities have been pressured to provide environments that protect their patients from HAI. Therefore, major health institutions have embarked on deliberate efforts to curb the situation that is threatening to be rampant.
Doctors have discovered that a simple way of keeping tabs on healthcare-associated infections is by controlling the occurrence of VTE (Venous Thromboembolism). The condition may sometimes cause serious discomfort but no major complications. However, it is known to be very dangerous at times and is considered one of the leading causes of easily preventable deaths in healthcare institutions.
The other way of dealing with these infections is through timelines and goals, which help medical practitioners to stay focused. Also, it enables them to maintaining high levels of communication during the time of treatment. It includes first agreeing on the general goals. The goals need to be adequately aggressive to sanction a shift in design. Setting goals from the onset is important because it helps in minimizing cases of HAI.
Patient education regarding the proper use of blood thinners is also very important in curbing this menace. It is a common practice for patients who have been operated to be given new blood thinner prescriptions. The importance of blood thinners is that they help patients from being attacked with dangerous clots. However, improper use of these can be catastrophic in that they will tend to develop uncontrollable bleeding. When this happens, drug event may follow.
The solution lies in educating them on the proper use of blood thinners. It can be done by means of a video tutorial which only lasts 10 minutes as well as 24-page booklet. With these, patients should be able to understand what they can expect by taking these drugs.
Limiting the lengths of shifts of resident doctors can also help. A doctor who works longer will be more fatigued and therefore more error prone. Medical staffs should be rested and stick to working 80 hours a week. For instance, those working on a rotating shift of 30 hours must only be allowed to attend to patients for sixteen hours. In between, they should sleep for at least 5 hours. Only then can they perform at their optimum level and provide high standards of patient safety.
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