The Center for Disease sway and Pr...

The Center for Disease sway and Prevention (CDC) has issued guidelines for controlling environmental infection in health care facilities. The glutted report is available online at http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/rr5210a1.htm.

Although health care facilities rarely are implicated in disease transmission, inadvertent exposing s to environmental or airborne pathogens can deduction in adverse patient outcomes and cause illness among health care workers. Environmental infection-control strategies and engineering bridles can effectively prevent these infections.

Included in the recommendations are standards for the following:

* Design and maintenance of air-handling systems

* Demolition, construction, repair, and renovation projects

* Ventilation requirements for protective environment, airborne infection isolation, and operating rooms

* reign over of waterborne microorganisms in distribution regularitys ice machines, and hydrotherapy tanks.

* Cleaning and disinfecting surfaces in patient-care areas.

* Cleaning posterity and body substance spills.

* Allowing flowers and plants in patient-care areas.

* curse control.

* Handling of laundry and bedding.

* Sampling of air, water, and environmental surfaces.

* Handling of animals in health care facilities.

* Handling, transporting, storing, and disposal of medical waste.

The CDC ends that the incidence of infections and pseudo-outbreaks can be minimized from appropriate use of cleaners and disinfectants, appropriate maintenance of medical equipment, adherence to water-quality standards for hemodialysis and ventilation standards for specialized care environments, and apt management of water intrusion into the health care facility.

COPYRIGHT 2003 American Academy of Family Physicians

COPYRIGHT 2003 Gale Group