Infection Control Procedures in Care Homes

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Certain types of viral and bacterial infection are common in care homes, and infection is a major concern for care home patients.

The Department of Health and Social Care and Public Health England issued guidance on infection prevention and control in care homes.

This guidance is available as a comprehensive 102-page document, or as a 16-page summary. In this post we’ll provide a brief overview of the official government guidance for infection control procedures in care homes. We’ll also discuss some ways you can improve the procedures in your care setting.

Understand the Chain of Infection

The chain of infection refers to the process by which a care home resident might acquire an infection:

  • The person at risk – All care home residents are at risk of infection. But some may be suffering from pre-existing conditions, and others may be immunocompromised. So some residents may be higher risk than others.
  • The organism – Virus, bacteria, and fungus, including influenza, norovirus, Covid-19, and MRSA.
  • The reservoir – The vessel or vector that could host the organism, including humans, animals, surfaces, equipment, and food and drink.
  • Transmission – How the organism moves from one host body to a reservoir, including vomiting, sneezing, etc. As well as thinking about how an organism leaves a body, think about how it enters the body too – via inhalation, breaks in skin, or through mucous membranes (eyes, nose, mouth).
  • Spread – How the organism spreads across the care home setting. Some organisms are spread via hand contact, while others are airborne.

Standard Infection Control Procedures

The government guidance advises a “simple, consistent and effective” approach to infection prevention and control in care homes.

This includes:

You can read our complete guide to standard infection control procedures for healthcare settings.

5 Moments for Hand Hygiene

The government guidance defines five key moments when care home staff should carry out hand hygiene.

These are:

  • Before touching a resident.
  • Before carrying out any clean or aseptic procedures.
  • After any body fluid exposure risk. For example, after a resident sneezes in your vicinity.
  • After touching a resident.
  • After touching a person’s surroundings.

Patient Zoning and Isolation

Any patients carrying an infection risk may need to be isolated to prevent further infections. This became common practice in all healthcare settings during the 2020 pandemic, when any patients who tested positive for Covid-19 were placed separately from other patients.

The guidance advises making single rooms available for this purpose. It also stresses the need to consider the resident’s physical and psychological wellbeing. Keep the resident and their visitors informed both verbally and in writing. And ensure their environment contains hand hygiene facilities and, ideally, ensuite toilet and bathroom facilities.

Air Purification Systems for Care Homes

The government guidance on infection prevention and control in care homes is primarily focused on helping care home staff understand the risks of infection. It encourages care home staff to recognise infection risks, and act to contain them before they spread. But it also recommends policies, procedures and precautions to help make infections less likely from taking hold in the first place.

The guidance acknowledges that many infections that can spread through care home settings are airborne. Good air filtration can therefore make a huge difference in preventing and controlling even the most serious of infections in care homes. For example, one University of Cambridge study found that an air filtration system in a Covid-19 ward successfully removed almost all traces of the airborne virus.

Our range of air purifiers can make a huge difference in care homes and other residential care settings. They can trap up to 99.97% of particles down to 0.1 microns, and up to 99% of viruses and bacteria. This includes those microorganisms responsible for all of the most common outbreaks in care homes.

Want to talk about how we can help prevent infections and improve the air quality in your care home? Get in touch to talk to one of our air purification experts today.

Immunocompromised vs Immunosuppressed – Is There a Difference?

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What’s the difference in meaning between immunocompromised and immunosuppressed?

Both terms refer to deficiencies in the normal function of the immune system. So whether a person’s immunocompromised or immunosuppressed, their body’s will be less effective at fighting off infections.

But what’s the difference between these two terms?

What’s The Difference Between Immunocompromised and Immunosuppressed?

Both terms refer to essentially the same thing – that a person has a weakened immune system. So some people might use these terms interchangeably, but the difference between the two is why someone’s immune system is weak; whether it’s a result of a medical condition or medication.

Generally speaking:

  • Immunocompromised people have a weakened immune system as a result of another health condition.
  • Immunosuppressed people have an immune system that’s been weakened intentionally as a result of medication or other treatment.

What Does Immunocompromised Mean?

This usually means that a health condition is affecting a patient’s ability to fight infections. Examples of conditions that can affect a patient’s immune system include HIV, cancer, diabetes, malnutrition, and some genetic disorders.

What Does Immunosuppressed Mean?

When people use this term, they usually refer to a condition that’s been induced deliberately. Doctors may prescribe patients with immunosuppressant drugs for a variety of reasons, which we’ll discuss below.

Why Is Immunosuppression Deliberately Induced?

There are many reasons why a doctor might intentionally suppress a patient’s immune system, via medication or other procedures:

Doctors can induce immunosuppression with medication. But they can also induce it with radiation treatment (such as chemotherapy), plasmapheresis (the removal and treatment of blood plasma), and certain surgical procedures (such as a splenectomy, the removal of the spleen).

But when a patient’s received immunosuppressive treatment, they become immunocompromised, indicating that their immune system is less effective at fighting infection.

This is why these two terms are regularly confused, and often used interchangeably – because when a patient is immunosuppressed, they become immunocompromised. And a patient may be immunocompromised as a result of immunosuppressants.

How to Make Hospitals and Healthcare Settings Safe For Immunosuppressed and Immunocompromised Patients

Infection is a risk for anyone who spends any time in a hospital, whether they’re staff, patients, visitors, contractors, or other members of the public. But the risk of infection is particularly acute for immunocompromised patients. Due to their weakened immune systems, any infection they contract has the potential to be life-threatening.

Following the Standard Infection Control Precautions will help keep healthcare environments safe for immunocompromised patients. These include:

Addressing Airborne Infection Risks

A hospital grade air purifier can help you quickly and thoroughly improve the air quality in any area of your hospital where immunocompromised patients may receive treatment.

Our Blueair HealthProtectTM air purifiers are fitted with advanced HEPASilent technology. These are capable of catching 99.97% of particles down to 0.1 microns. This includes the viruses and bacteria which carry the greatest infection risks for immunocompromised patients. Examples of viruses that can be removed include Coronaviruses such as SARS-COV-2 and influenza, which are highly contagious.

Take a look at our specialist air purification systems for hospitals.

 

Examples of Continuity of Care in GP Surgeries

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If you manage or work in a GP surgery, continuity of care can make a huge difference to your patients’ experience and their overall wellbeing.

In this post, we’ll explain what continuity of care is in a GP setting, before exploring some of the policies and procedures that will help you deliver a higher quality of care to your patients.

What Is Continuity of Care?

Continuity of care is a strategy for making primary care local, accessible and familiar. It’s all about building strong and ongoing relationships between GPs and patients. At the heart of continuity of care is the idea that patients should see the same GP as often as possible.

For patients, this means that their care will be personalised, and focused on their unique needs and circumstances.

Continuity of care means that the GP develops a deep understanding of the patient and their medical history. As a result, the GP can make more informed diagnoses, and patients can better trust their GP’s advice and judgement.

Management Continuity

In delivering continuity of care, management continuity is just as important as relationship continuity. This means ensuring effective information sharing and co-ordination of services when a patient receives care from more than one clinician or provider.

On a fundamental level, continuity of care means that a patient will regularly consult the same GP so that they can develop a stronger therapeutic relationship.

Yet continuity of care goes deeper than this. Due to a number of factors, it’s not always possible for patients to see the same GP at every visit. The considerable NHS backlog, coupled with patients’ needs and expectations for fast access, means that patients often need to see whichever GP is available.

What Does Continuity of Care Look Like in Practice?

Here are some principles that can help GP practices work towards continuity of care:

  • Access arrangements – When booking appointments, patients often have to make a choice between seeing their regular GP, or getting a faster consultation. At the front desk, patients should be advised on the benefits of continuity, even if this sometimes means waiting longer for appointments.
  • Transparency – Clinics should be open about the availability of their clinicians for different types of consultation. They should publish the clinic’s policy on continuity of care, and make this policy accessible to staff and patients alike.
  • Consultations – The emphasis should be on quality, rather than quantity. There should be sufficient time in the consultations for the sort of interactions that lead to a productive therapeutic relationship.
  • Management continuity – All healthcare providers make relevant patient information readily available, with established routines for handovers and information exchanges. Providers make personal contact between each other, with proactive follow-ups on patients following procedures or health events.

Should Continuity of Care Still be a Priority?

If the NHS is facing a backlog, and if patients must routinely wait for consultations, does it still make sense to promote continuity of care?

As part of a 2010 inquiry into the quality of general practice in England, The King’s Trust conducted a consultation of continuity of care and the patient experience.

Their consultation found that the strong therapeutic relationships created by continuity of care result in:

  • Increased levels of patient satisfaction.
  • Greater morale among staff at all levels.
  • Reduced costs.
  • Better health outcomes.

So though the current emphasis might be on reducing the backlog, continuity of care may still be the most effective and sustainable strategy for maintaining good care quality standards.

We Can Help You Improve Standards in Your GP Clinic

We offer a range of products, services and solutions that will contribute to better care quality standards in your GP clinic.

Get in touch to discuss how we can help you make your healthcare setting safer and more efficient for staff and patients alike.

 

Occupational Health Hazards for Nurses and How to Prevent Them

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Hospitals and healthcare settings can be hazardous environments to work in. Nurses face multiple occupational health hazards every day – some obvious, others not so obvious.

In this post we’ll list some common occupational health hazards for nurses, and how to prevent them.

Slip, Trip and Fall Hazards in Hospitals

Slips, trips and falls are an occupational health hazard in most, if not all, working environments. And hospitals and healthcare settings are no exception. The difference is that slips, trips and falls in the healthcare sector can be particularly dangerous.

If nurses slip or trip while carrying delicate medical equipment, sharp instruments, hazardous samples or substances, or even trays of food, then they could cause some serious harm to themselves and others.

There may also be more slipping and tripping hazards in healthcare settings than in other workplaces, including spilled fluids, dropped or discarded gowns, clothing or bedding, and devices and equipment left out of place.

The Solution

Thorough and comprehensive cleaning procedures can ensure that tripping and slipping hazards are addressed before they cause any problems. Fluid management is an important area of focus. Unless spills are cleaned as soon as possible, surfaces can remain slippery for hours.

We stock a range of spill kits to help hospitals address chemical and cytotoxic spills promptly, thoroughly, and effectively.

We also stock absorbent floor mats for better fluid management during procedures. Capable of absorbing up to 8.5 litres of water and 3.5 litres of saline, they gel liquids and become dry to the touch. So they immediately remove slipping hazards in surgical environments. And following the procedure, you can simply dispose of them, allowing for faster cleaning and swifter turnaround times.

Infection & Contamination Hazards for Nurses

Nurses work very closely with both staff and patients, and they regularly provide support during treatments and procedures. So there’s a constant risk of infection from coughs, sneezes, and other bodily fluids. And if nurses become contaminated, there’s the risk they’ll pass on these infections to other, more vulnerable patients.

But these aren’t the only infection and contamination risks in healthcare settings. Nurses must also consider bacteria, viruses and other organisms lingering on clothing and surfaces; VOCs and other chemicals; particulate matter from outside sources; and radiation from certain devices and procedures.

The Solution

Standard infection control precautions can help nurses and other healthcare workers prevent and control infection risks at all levels. Precautions include thorough cleaning protocols and procedures; standards for PPE; good hand hygiene; cough and sneeze etiquette, and more.

Air quality consultations can also help nurses identify the sort of infection and contamination risks they might face, and the measures they can take to overcome them.

Finally, hospital-grade air purifiers can remove many of the common contaminants and harmful substances found in hospital air, including viruses, bacteria, microplastics, VOCs, particulate matter, and more. Our range of air purifiers for the healthcare sector can catch up to 99.97% of particles down to 0.1 microns.

Heavy Lifting in Healthcare Settings

Heavy lifting is another occupational risk that’s found in almost all healthcare settings. But once again, the risk for nurses can be particularly high. This is due to the sorts of items and objects that nurses might be required to move, from vulnerable patients to expensive and delicate medical devices.

Nurses risk sprains and back injuries whenever they move heavy objects. But if they struggle and falter while moving a vulnerable patient, there’s a risk of concussion, broken bones, or even death.

The Solution

Adequate training in safe lifting techniques can help nurses manage these risks. Hospitals and healthcare settings should also have procedures and protocols in place for moving vulnerable patients. These might include using wheelchairs, stretchers and trolleys wherever possible, and never attempting to move a patient without assistance.

Stress and Exhaustion

There’s no denying that nursing is a tough job. Nurses face life and death situations every day. They work long hours while under considerable pressure, and often for insufficient pay. And as the NHS is currently facing a treatment backlog and a series of strikes and industrial action, it seems like things have never been more difficult for nurses and other healthcare workers.

All of this pressure is going to take its toll. Stress and exhaustion can be harmful in itself. But in the long-term, constant stress and exhaustion can lead to a number of other more serious health conditions.

The Solution

Government plans to tackle the NHS backlog might reduce some of the pressures that nurses face in their roles. But even without the current issues the NHS faces, stress and exhaustion have been occupational hazards in the healthcare sector for years.

The Health Foundation issues a series of recommendations for fixing some of the problems the NHS is currently facing. They suggested that increasing staff numbers could increase hospitals’ capacity, which could mean shorter working hours and reduced workloads for nurses. They also suggested on-the-job mental health and wellbeing support for healthcare staff.

Addressing Occupational Health Hazards for Nurses

From spill kits to infection control services, we offer a range of products and solutions that will help you address many of the occupational health hazards nurses face.

Get in touch to discuss how we can help you make your healthcare setting safer and more efficient for staff and patients alike.

Doctors Surgery Waiting Room Improvement Ideas

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A good doctor’s surgery waiting room should be warm and welcoming. But it’s a lot more important that it’s safe and functional.

If you run a GP surgery and you want to improve your waiting room, first you need to understand some of the key problems you need to overcome.

Key Challenges for GP Waiting Rooms

  • Infection risks – There are always viruses making the rounds. Many of those who visit your waiting room will carry infection risks, or else they’ll have conditions that might make them vulnerable to infection. You need to strike a balance between keeping your patients safe without preventing anyone from receiving the care and support they need.
  • Accessibility – Some patients will have limited mobility. Some may have low literacy skills, learning disabilities, or other conditions that might make accessing and processing information difficult.
  • A warm welcome? – Very few people actively enjoy visiting their GP. Your waiting room could be a dreary and oppressive place that makes your patients feel even worse. Or it could be a warm and welcoming portal to better health, a place that immediately puts your patients at ease.

In this post, we’ll explore some doctors’ surgery waiting room improvement ideas – starting with some key practical and clinical considerations.

Infection Prevention and Control in Waiting Rooms

Good infection prevention and control should be at the heart of your waiting room’s design. And robust cleaning protocols and procedures are at the heart of good infection prevention and control.

You should weigh up the infection risk for every decision you make. For example, viruses and bacteria can spread in the fibres of carpets and curtains, but they can also live for a while on hard surfaces. So you’ll have to devise a specific cleaning protocol for every item of furniture you introduce to the waiting room, based on its material and its frequency of use.

Also, you might want to add certain items to your waiting room to keep patients occupied while they wait, such as magazines, or toys for children. But again, remember that anything that stays in your waiting room can act as a vector for infection. So if you’re providing magazines, change them as often as you can. And if you provide toys, make sure they’re easy to clean, and clean them as regularly as possible.

Read our full guide to cleaning procedures for infection prevention and control.

We also have a guide to standard infection control procedures for all healthcare settings.

Waiting Room Design Ideas for Accessibility

Some of your patients will have mobility issues. Any furniture you provide in your waiting room should account for this. Crucially, your chairs need arms so that they’re easy for patients to sit on and to stand up from. And make sure you leave room in your waiting room for wheelchair users.

Make your chairs alternating colours, and patients with dementia will find them easier to distinguish. Make your lighting bright enough that partially sighted patients will be able to read all relevant notices, but not so dazzling that your waiting room feels oppressively bright.

And remember that some patients will struggle to access or process information. For every essential pamphlet, leaflet, form, poster, or notice you provide, you should make alternative versions available. At the very least, you should provide easy-read versions for patients with learning disabilities and braille versions for patients with a visual impairment.

How to Make a Waiting Room Warm and Welcoming

Making your waiting room as warm and welcoming as possible without compromising on infection prevention and control, and accessibility can be tricky. You need to think of ways you can make the room welcoming without adding to your staff’s workloads too.

You could add plants, which can have a calming effect on anyone. But do your staff have the capacity to look after these plants? Have you thought about pollen, and other potentially harmful emissions from plant life?

You could paint the walls a soothing colour, but not all colours are soothing to all people. And you can hang artwork to add light, life and colour to the room. But artwork can be pricey. And again, different images can mean vastly different things to different people.

You could play some music in your waiting room to set a positive mood, or to help patients relax. Though bear in mind you’ll need a licence to play anything other than commercial radio. You could also place a TV in your waiting room. This will keep some patients occupied while they wait. But some broadcasts, such as rolling news coverage, may only serve to increase patients’ anxiety.

Ultimately, there’s no accounting for taste. How you choose to decorate your waiting room might depend on your specific patient demographic. So why not ask for feedback? Talk to your staff, and as many patients as you can, to get some insights into the sort of ideas that would help make your waiting room a more pleasant place to wait.

A Breath of Fresh Air

Work to improve the air quality in your waiting room and you can contribute to good infection prevention and control.

Medical grade air purifiers can remove up to 99.97% of hazardous and toxic air pollutants, including particulate matter, microplastics, smoke, dust, and VOCs – along with bacteria, viruses, and other microorganisms.

So even a small air purifier can quickly and effectively reduce the levels of airborne contaminants in your waiting room. But at the same time, they’ll fill every corner of your waiting room with pure air, so the very atmosphere of your surgery will feel noticeably cleaner and fresher.

Read more about how an air purifier can help you prevent and control infections while contributing to your patients’ overall wellbeing.

We Can Help You Improve Your GP Clinic Waiting Room

From air purifiers to advanced cleaning solutions, we offer a range of products and services that will help you make your waiting room safer, cleaner and more welcoming for both staff and patients.

Get in touch to discuss how we can help you make fast and effective improvements to your GP clinic waiting room.

 

Ways to Prevent Infection During Chemotherapy Treatments

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Chemotherapy can lower a patient’s white blood cell count. Cancers can also make existing white blood cells less effective at fighting bacteria and viruses.

This means that, for chemotherapy patients, even common infections can be much harder to treat, and a lot more dangerous – or even fatal.

In this post we’ll discuss some ways to prevent infection during chemotherapy treatments. To begin with, we’ll explore some of the precautions patients can take to prevent infection during their chemotherapy. We’ll then look at the measures hospitals and healthcare settings can take to prevent and control infection among their most vulnerable patients.

Ways to Prevent Infection During Chemotherapy – For Patients

First, let’s take a look at some of the precautions chemotherapy patients could take to reduce their infection risk.

These are all general ideas for how you can lower your risk of infection. Consult your oncologist for expert advice that’s tailored to you and your needs.

Avoid Crowds or Certain Locations

While undergoing chemotherapy, your oncologist may advise you to avoid crowds, particularly during peak flu seasons. Infections spread more easily in crowded enclosed spaces than they do in outdoor spaces.

Depending on your white blood cell count, your oncologist might advise you to avoid specific locations and situations, such as public transport, supermarkets, cinemas, and so on. They may also advise you on precautions you can take if you do need to go to a crowded place, such as wearing PPE.

Also, for the duration of your chemotherapy, you should avoid spending time with anyone who might carry an infection risk – even if they’re your closest relatives. Sick people could pass on an infection to you. But there’s also the risk that you’ll pass on an infection to them.

Dietary Risks

Food can be a major source of infection. Throughout your chemotherapy, you should take extra precautions around the food you eat:

  • Don’t share plates or cutlery with others.
  • Inspect all fruit and vegetables for signs of spoiling, and thoroughly wash all produce before you eat it.
  • Make sure that any meat, seafood, and eggs you eat are fully cooked.
  • Avoid eating out, especially at buffets where food is left out for hours.
  • Avoid eating some foods entirely, including honey, sushi, blue cheese, and brie.

Pets and Animals

Some infections can be transmitted from animals to people.

Toxoplasmosis is the major risk you’ll face during your chemotherapy.

If you have a cat, you should avoid changing their litter for the duration of your treatment. If you have to change their litter, wear gloves while you do so, and wash your hands thoroughly afterwards.

And speaking of cats, it’s a good idea to keep them indoors during your treatment. They could pick up all sorts of pathogens while they’re out, particularly if they catch any birds or mice.

If you have a dog, ask someone else to walk them. Or at the very least, wear gloves when picking up their droppings, and use hand sanitiser immediately afterwards.

Finally, don’t get any new animals during your treatment, especially not young animals. Not only are they more likely to carry infections, they’re also a lot of work. And during your chemotherapy, you’ll want to take things as easy as possible.

Ways to Prevent Infection During Chemotherapy Treatment – For Hospitals

Chemotherapy patients can take precautions to lower their risk of infection during chemotherapy. But hospitals also have a responsibility to prevent and control infection among all of their patients, particularly the most vulnerable ones.

To achieve this, all healthcare staff must follow the 10 standard infection control precautions. These include:

  • Patient placement, and assessing a patient’s infection risk. There’s a reason why chemotherapy treatments take place in a dedicated oncology department. It ensures that chemotherapy patients are kept separate from patients who might carry an infection risk.
  • Hand hygiene – All staff should thoroughly wash their hands at certain key points, including both before and after interacting with a patient and their immediate surroundings. They should also follow a specific hand cleaning technique.
  • PPE – Staff should wear the appropriate PPE for each occasion. They should also follow certain procedures for storing, putting on, taking off, and disposing of PPE.

Other Measures to Prevent Infection During Chemotherapy

Comprehensive cleaning protocols and procedures can play a huge role in preventing and controlling infection in all healthcare settings. The protocols should target the areas where infections are most likely to take hold and thrive. They should also recommend the most effective cleaning products and the correct procedures for using them.

A hospital grade air purifier can help you quickly and thoroughly improve the air quality in your oncology department, which can prevent infection from airborne pathogens.

Our Blueair HealthProtectTM air purifiers are fitted with advanced HEPASilent technology. This is capable of catching 99.97% of particles down to 0.1 microns. This includes the viruses and bacteria which carry the greatest infection risks for chemotherapy patients.

Take a look at our specialist air purification systems for hospitals.

 

The Link Between Adult Social Care and Hospital Discharges

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The NHS is currently facing a significant backlog that shows no sign of easing in the foreseeable future.

As a measure for easing the pressures, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has discussed greater investment in social care.

In this post, we’ll explore the link between adult social care and hospital discharges. We shall explain how investing in social care may help free up hospital beds for other critical care patients.

How Can Adult Social Care Investment Free Up Hospital Beds?

Not all patients necessarily need to be in hospital to receive the care they need. Some patients can instead receive care in the community. Essentially, this means that they’ll leave hospital and go to either their home, a family member’s home, or a dedicated residential setting.

A care worker or nurse will then visit them routinely to give them the care they need. This might involve administering medication, supervising physiotherapy exercises, or simply checking up on them to see how they’re progressing following hospital treatment.

If need be, the care worker may refer the patient back to hospital to receive more intensive care or supervision. But in most cases, the patient can make a full recovery from the comfort of their own home.

Why Are Adult Social Care Issues Causing Hospital Bed Shortages?

Every patient receiving care in the community is a patient who is not taking up a hospital bed. This frees up hospital beds for more critical cases. It also increases the overall capacity of the hospital and its staff. This can make a difference to many of the crises the NHS is currently facing, from the backlog of care to the long ambulance waiting times.

How is the Government Investing in Adult Social Care?

During the 2020 pandemic, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) was committed to freeing up as many hospital beds as possible. They aimed to reduce pressures on the NHS and to ensure that there would be capacity for any COVID patient who needed hospital care. And they did this via a fund that would allow patients to receive up to six weeks of free social care upon leaving hospital.

In September 2022, there were reportedly 13,000 people in hospital who could instead be receiving care in the community. So the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care unveiled a £500m grant for adult social care.

Will This Investment Make a Difference?

Unfortunately, the adult social care sector is itself going through some tough times.

Vacancies in adult social care rose by 52% in 2021-2022. So even if the government pledges to fund adult social care, there may not be the capacity to handle the increased caseload this would bring.

The DHSC has also discussed launching a domestic adult social care recruitment campaign. But given how long it takes to recruit and train specialist social workers to provide care in the community, it’s unlikely that this will make a difference in the short-term.

Investing in adult social care is a vital step to addressing the NHS’s backlog, and the numerous additional problems it brings. Though as is usually the case, things are far more complicated than they initially seem, and we’re unlikely to see any noticeable improvements in the near future.

How Can Hospitals Manage in the Short-Term?

While this issue continues to affect practice, hospitals and healthcare staff continue to work to the best of their ability to deliver efficient and high-quality care.

We have been working with healthcare professionals for over 20 years to find solutions and procedures to help improve efficiency through infection control and air quality monitoring as well as by providing products to help improve turn-around times and patient outcomes.

Get in touch to find out how we help hospitals and healthcare settings control and prevent infection while improving operational efficiency.

 

 

Operating Theatre Staff Roles and Responsibilities

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It takes a lot of people to run a successful operating theatre. The most efficient operating theatre is one in which everyone knows their own role and responsibilities, as this means that everyone can depend on everything being done that needs to be done.

In this post we’ll explore the various operating theatre staff roles, and the key responsibilities for each member of the team.

Outline of Operating Theatre Staff Rolls

Please note that this is a general list of operating theatre staff roles. Specific theatres might have specific roles, and many members of the team will share responsibilities as the situation demands. So please don’t treat this list as a definite hierarchy so much as an example of the sort of roles that could exist in your average operating theatre.

Operating Theatre Manager

The operating theatre manager oversees the theatre’s day-to-day operational issues. They will often manage multiple sites. Their responsibilities involve managing budgets and resources, as well as implementing risk management and health and safety policies.

As well as providing professional leadership to all theatre staff, they might lead on research projects and assess, develop, and implement new evidence-based programmes of care.

You can read our full guide to an operating theatre manager’s roles and responsibilities.

Operating Theatre Team Leader

Supporting the theatre manager, the team leader will directly lead the multidisciplinary theatre team, both professionally and clinically.

Their responsibilities will involve planning and organising workload and supervising the nursing staff. They may also provide clinical advice, and ongoing training and development in the use of specialist instruments and equipment.

The team leader will also oversee the maintenance of operating theatre equipment, which will include keeping on top of stock levels.

Theatre Practitioners

Nurses, surgeons, anaesthetists and other specialists. Responsible for undertaking or assisting in the highly skilled invasive medical procedures that take place in the controlled theatre environment.

As they carry out such delicate, high-pressure procedures, many would argue that the theatre practitioners are the most important of all the operating theatre staff.

However, as we’ll see, the practitioners depend on a huge team of support staff to ensure they can deliver the highest possible quality of care.

In an operating theatre, communication is key, and each member of the team must feel like they can depend on every other member of the team at all times.

Operating Department Practitioners (ODPs)

ODPs have a diverse range of skills across three main areas of the theatre:

  • Anaesthetics – While the anaesthetist works, the ODP will usually interact with the patient – talking to them and giving them whatever support they need to stay calm.
  • Scrub – While the theatre team is operating, the ODPs will ensure that all surgical equipment is readily available and adequately sterilised.
  • Recovery – ODPs will provide a lot of recovery support, including airway management, pain relief, and supervising patients as anaesthesia wears off.

Surgical Care Practitioners

Registered non-medical healthcare professionals who work with the surgical team to ensure the best outcome for the patient.

Before the operation, they will gather the patient’s medical history and perform an assessment. Throughout this process, they will liaise with the surgical team so as to inform them of any of the patient’s special requirements.

During procedures, they may be responsible for certain surgical interventions. These may include prepping the patient, assisting in haemostasis, and carrying out wound closure procedures.

Following the operation, they’ll assist in the patient assessments, and contribute to any meetings to discuss the patient’s ongoing care.

Recovery Practitioner

As the name suggests, recovery practitioners are there to oversee the patient’s recovery. Though their responsibilities begin before the procedure, as they usually assist the anaesthetist and ODP in supervising the patient.

Following the procedure, they’ll oversee advanced pain and airway management, and the ongoing monitoring of the patient for post-operative complications.

Support Workers

Finally, a team of support workers will carry out all the essential housekeeping duties and assist in any other activities essential to the smooth running of the operating theatre.

This might include maintaining the cleanliness of the theatre itself, as well as all ante rooms, changing rooms, kitchens, and sterilisation suites. They will also assist in stock management, keeping tabs on stock levels and ensuring that the team will always have everything they need, exactly when they need it.

Indeed, a good operating theatre support worker will be able to anticipate the requirements of the operating team, so they can give them the support they need before they even realise they need it.

Running an Efficient Operating Theatre

As we’ve seen, it takes a huge team of people to run a successful operating theatre.

Each member of the team needs to be in exactly the right place at exactly the right time. They should have fast access to exactly the equipment they need, and they should be able to depend on this equipment being in a safe and reliable condition.

Good communication is vital if such a large, multidisciplinary team is to function. Effective leadership can help create a culture in which each member of the team is perfectly aware of their role and responsibilities. But this is just one aspect of an efficient operating theatre.

Read our full guide to improving quality and efficiency in operating theatres.

Get Expert Advice Today

Whether you want a consultation on effective infection control, or some advice on improving operational effectiveness in the theatre, our experts are here to help.

Get in touch to talk to one of our expert consultants today.

Ambulance Cleaning and Decontamination Checklist

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Regularly and thoroughly cleaning and decontaminating ambulances is essential for effective infection prevention and control.

Ambulance Cleaning and Decontamination Challenges

But there are several factors that make ambulance cleaning and decontamination challenging. It can be cramped inside an ambulance, and the sheer amount of equipment contained within can make quick cleans particularly difficult. Plus, ambulances also contain numerous delicate medical devices, which alcohol or chlorine-based disinfectants could easily damage.

But the biggest barrier to effective ambulance cleaning and decontamination is the need to keep downtime to a minimum. Ambulances are in high demand, and crews often use them in shifts. This leaves very little spare time for routine cleaning and decontamination.

How to Overcome Cleaning Challenges

So to overcome these challenges, ambulance services need to establish a cleaning procedure that is as fast and straightforward as possible. And at the same time, they must make use of cleaning products that run no risk of damaging or corroding any delicate equipment.

Ambulance Cleaning Checklist – An Example

Working to a checklist will help ambulance crews ensure they’re as thorough as possible in their limited windows for cleaning. A methodical approach will ensure that nothing gets overlooked during the cleaning and decontamination process.

Here’s an example ambulance cleaning checklist that covers all possible bases:

Item  
Door knobs and handles  
Door surface  
Patient bed  
Sitting couch  
Steering wheel  
Driver’s seat and other driving equipment  
Light switches  
Patient transfer trolley  
Other horizontal surfaces  
Windowsills  
Walls and corners  
Cardiac monitor  
Defibrillator  
Ventilator  
Leads (e.g. ECG)  
O2 Flowmeters  
ECG Machines  
Medicine Trolley  
Bed Sheets (Changed)  
Almira  
   
Signature:  

 

Hand Hygiene and PPE

Cleaning the interior of the ambulance is a vital part of infection prevention and control. But between cleaning procedures, ambulance staff can adopt measures to reduce the risk of infection.

Good hand hygiene is just as important in the ambulance as it is in any other healthcare environment. Paramedics should wash their hands at five key points:

  • Before they touch a patient.
  • After they touch a patient.
  • After touching a patient’s immediate surroundings.
  • Before undertaking any clean or antiseptic procedures.
  • After any body fluid exposure risk.

Paramedics should follow a specific hand washing technique to ensure thorough cleanliness. And they should have access to effective antimicrobial hand sanitiser as close as possible to the point of care.

They should also wear the appropriate personal protection equipment (PPE) for the task at hand.

For more information about good practice for staff, read our full guide to standard infection control precautions.

Choosing the Correct Ambulance Cleaning Products

The choice of cleaning product can make a huge difference in ambulance cleaning turnaround time.

Virusolve®+ Wipes are an effective one-step solution. They clean, sanitise and disinfect surfaces at once, so there’s no need to prepare surfaces beforehand, or treat them afterwards.

They’re odourless, colourless, non-hazardous, non-irritant, non-flammable and non-corrosive, so they’re safe to use on even the most delicate medical equipment. They can be used on any surface, including carpets and upholstery, and as they’re hypo-allergenic there’s no risk of triggering reactions in patients.

Using absorbent mats for certain procedures in the ambulance can also help reduce downtime. Some brands of floor mat can absorb up to 8.5 litres of water or 3.5 litres of saline, whilst non-slip alternatives may still prove useful for smaller spills of fluid up to 2 litres. Then afterwards, you can simply dispose of the mat and apply a fresh one. This means you won’t have to spend so long cleaning spills on surfaces.

Get in touch to discuss how we can help you ensure your ambulance cleaning process is as fast, effective and thorough as possible.

The Patient Safety and Infection Prevention Show 2023

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The Patient Safety and Infection Prevention Show will run at the Healthcare Show taking place 26-27 April 2023 at ExCel London.

This is a two-day dedicated conference supporting doctors, nurses, infection prevention and control professionals, and any other healthcare professionals interested in the latest solutions for preventing infections and improving care quality standards.

What To Expect at the Patient Safety and Infection Prevention Show 2023

From practical solutions to a wealth of “how-to” advice, the Patient Safety and Infection Prevention Show 2023 has much to offer anyone looking to improve best-practice techniques in infection prevention and control.

Across the two-day conference, topics discussed will include:

  • Using technology to identify infections in their earliest stages.
  • How a more positive culture can help you transform patient safety.
  • A snapshot of the current state of patient safety and infection control across both the NHS and private healthcare settings.

The Patient Safety and Infection Prevention Show 2023 will also feature:

  • More than 300 exhibitors demonstrating fresh innovations and advanced solutions for improving care quality standards.
  • A range of inspirational keynote sessions from industry leaders.
  • The Primary Care & Integration Hub – featuring practical sessions focused on key challenges concerning workforce, finance, leadership, public engagement, technology, and governance.

Register for the Patient Safety and Infection Prevention Show 2023

The full programme for the Patient Safety and Infection Prevention Show 2023 will likely be announced in early 2023.

In the meantime, you can register to attend as a delegate, or book a stand as an exhibitor.

You can also sign up to the Healthcare Show’s Newsletter to receive updates on talks, exhibitors, and workshops as they’re announced.

Advanced Solutions for Patient Safety and Infection Prevention and Control from Cairn Technology

If you can’t wait until the Patient Safety and Infection Prevention Show 2023 to discuss the latest innovations in infection prevention and control, talk to us.

We can help you achieve best practice in patient safety through delivering top-of-the-line hygiene standards for staff and patients alike.

For more than 20 years, we’ve delivered cutting-edge products and services for hospitals and other healthcare settings. Many of our clients have relied on our products and services for more than 10 years. We’ve provided products and services to NHS hospitals, private hospitals, and independent clinics across the UK.

Here are just some of the advanced services and solutions we can provide:

  • Monitoring services – including workplace exposure monitoring, sterile services cleanroom testing, bio-burden testing, spill kit training, and face fit testing services.
  • Infection control products – including absorbent mats for fluid management and Blueair HealthProtect™ air purification systems.

Head here to browse our complete range of advanced products, services and solutions.

Talk to an Expert Today

If there’s anything you’d like to discuss, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. Our experts are always on hand to answer any of your questions concerning patient safety and infection prevention and control, and to provide all the help and support you might need.

Get in touch to talk to a Cairn Technology expert today.