Minimising the Spread of Infection in the Operating Department

Abstract

We live in a world of continuing advances in technology, surgical techniques and rapidly improving medicine. Despite these advances, diseases are continuing to thrive and cause infection both in the community and, more disturbingly, in hospitals. Damani (2003) states that medical care is more complex than ever before, and this has resulted in hospital acquired infections (HAIs) increasing due to organisms which are resistant to antibiotics such as: methicillin resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and vancomyan resistant enterococci (VRE). Wilson (2006) explains that hospitals provide a particularly fertile breeding ground for resistant micro-organisms, due to the widespread exposure to antibiotics and the many opportunities that hospitals provide to transfer MRSA between vulnerable patients and into sites which are susceptible to infection, such as wounds and invasive devices. Damani (2003) emphasises again that the key to successful control of antimicrobial resistant pathogens in hospitals is good isolation techniques, and especially rigorous attention to hand hygiene by all members of staff who are in contact with patients affected or colonised with resistant pathogens. The aim should be to eliminate the infection as quickly as possible and to ensure that the patient's period of isolation is kept to a minimum. Advice and knowledge about the control of infection is therefore imperative.