Preventing Hospital-Acquired Infections

17 items · Health · Medium difficulty · 30 min

Practical checklist to reduce hospital-acquired infections across care settings.

• Perform hand hygiene compliance audits

  Use standard care moments to observe staff behavior and adherence.

• Observe hand hygiene at key care moments

  Include before/after patient contact and before procedures.

• Record and calculate compliance rates

  Track rates by ward and shift to spot trends.

• Provide alcohol-based hand rub at all care points

  Place dispensers within arm's reach of beds and entryways.

• Ensure routine environmental cleaning schedules

  Set daily and more frequent cleaning for high-risk areas.

• Use disinfectants approved for healthcare surfaces

  Follow manufacturer contact time and dilution instructions.

• Focus extra cleaning on high-touch surfaces

  Target doorknobs, bed rails, switches, and shared equipment.

• Implement isolation precautions for infectious patients

  Apply appropriate droplet, contact, or airborne measures as needed.

• Post clear isolation signage at room entry

  Include required PPE and entry rules on the sign.

• Assign dedicated equipment to isolated patients

  Avoid sharing devices or disinfect between uses.

• Train staff on PPE donning and doffing

  Use hands-on practice and competency checks to prevent contamination.

• Place sharps disposal containers at point of care

  Close and replace containers before they become overfilled.

• Handle and label clinical waste and linen safely

  Separate infectious waste and keep soiled linen contained during transport.

• Develop and follow linen handling protocol

  Minimize contact and bag soiled linen at the point of use.

• Conduct regular staff IPC training sessions

  Include new hires and periodic refreshers for all shifts.

• Audit and document cleaning and disinfection records

  Keep logs of cleaned areas and times for accountability.

• Review and update antibiotic-prescribing policies

  Work with stewardship or pharmacy to reduce unnecessary use.

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