The Comprehensive Guide to a Career as a Nursing Assistant

Chapter 5: Infection Control and Safety

As a certified nursing assistant, ensuring the safety of patients and preventing the spread of infections is a crucial part of your role. This chapter provides an overview of the principles of infection control and safety, standard precautions, hand hygiene, and personal protective equipment, proper body mechanics and safe patient handling, and medical emergencies and disaster preparedness.

Principles of Infection Control and Safety:
Infection control and safety principles are essential for nursing assistants to maintain a safe and healthy environment for patients. These principles include:

1. Hand hygiene: Washing hands with soap and water or using an alcohol-based hand sanitizer to prevent the spread of infections.
2. Standard precautions: Treating all bodily fluids and substances as potentially infectious and using appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) when providing care.
3. Environmental cleanliness: Keeping patient care areas clean and disinfected to prevent the spread of infections.
4. Isolation precautions: Implementing additional precautions to prevent the spread of infections for patients with known or suspected contagious illnesses.
5. Reporting infections: Reporting any suspected or confirmed infections to the appropriate healthcare professionals to prevent the spread of infections.

Standard Precautions, Hand Hygiene, and Personal Protective Equipment:
Standard precautions, hand hygiene, and personal protective equipment are essential for preventing the spread of infections. Examples of these infection control measures include:

1. Wearing gloves, gowns, masks, and eye protection when necessary.
2. Properly disposing of contaminated materials.
3. Washing hands before and after providing patient care.
4. Using hand sanitizer when soap and water are not available.

Proper Body Mechanics and Safe Patient Handling:
As a nursing assistant, you will be responsible for assisting patients with mobility and positioning. Proper body mechanics and safe patient handling techniques can help prevent injury to both you and the patient. Examples of proper body mechanics and safe patient handling techniques include:

1. Lifting with your legs, not your back.
2. Asking for assistance when necessary.
3. Using mechanical lifting devices when appropriate.
4. Ensuring patient positioning is comfortable and safe.

Medical Emergencies and Disaster Preparedness:
As a nursing assistant, you may be called upon to respond to medical emergencies or natural disasters. It is important to be prepared for these situations. Examples of preparedness measures include:

1. Knowing emergency procedures and protocols.
2. Maintaining emergency supply kits.
3. Evacuation plans in the event of a natural disaster.

Overall, infection control and safety are essential components of a nursing assistant's role. This chapter provides an overview of the principles of infection control and safety, standard precautions, hand hygiene, and personal protective equipment, proper body mechanics and safe patient handling, and medical emergencies and disaster preparedness.