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Web site spotlight: Infection control for your smallest patients

Staff Development Weekly: Insight on Evidence-Based Practice in Education, June 19, 2008

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Neonatal ICU (NICU) patients are at the top of the list of patients at high risk of developing infections. "Neonates are incredibly vulnerable [to infection]," says Alicia Budd, an ICP at The Children's Center of Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. Most of the children in the NICU are very premature, very low-birth-weight babies with immature immune systems. And as part of their treatment, these patients often need invasive devices that put them at further risk for infection.

The following are some important issues you should focus on in the NICU to help reduce the risk of infection:

• Make hand hygiene a priority. Proper hand hygiene is the most important precaution against infection for the NICU staff members at The Children's Center. They begin their day by performing a surgical hand scrub, says Budd. "Staff that work on the NICU understand how vulnerable the population is that they're caring for, and they're very aware of the importance of hand hygiene," she says.
• Cut down on transmission. Anytime equipment is shared among patients, the risk of infection increases. To avoid this problem, ensure that each child has his or her own designated stethoscope, thermometer, and other high-use equipment, says Budd. At The Children's Center, each NICU patient also has his or her own stock of disposable supplies.
• Adopt NICU-specific policies and procedures and enforce them. Respiratory virus season is a critical time of year for patients in the NICU. Neonates, who often have immature lungs, have difficulty weathering common viruses, so you should design your policies and procedures to protect them from this risk factor.

Editor's note: This excerpt was taken from the article "The NICU: Small patients pose big infection risks," found in the Reading Room at www.StrategiesForNurseManagers.com. Get a free trial membership that will give you 30 days to test drive all the exciting features on the Web site.

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