Hospitals and nursing homes benefit from infection control surveillance tools. These preventative devices improve patient and staff safety. When utilized, this tracking method can identify loopholes in protocols. Administration and physicians can work with that data to close the gap or minimize future infections. There are three common types of conditions that hospitals can track with an infection control surveillance tool.
Urinary Tract Infection
Urinary tract infections (UTI) can occur in hospitals or nursing homes. Some of the reasons for them are catheter-related. This application can help officials create tube insertion standards, change-out schedules, and reduce the time a patient is on a catheter. The CDC has developed guidelines around this infection.
Surgical Site Infections
Site wounds can quickly become infected, and the problem can be superficial, which means it only affects the skin. The disease can be underneath the skin and even spread into the body cavity and bloodstream. Physicians treat these conditions with antibiotics, and they might be administered orally or through an IV. In some cases, the stricken patient may require additional surgery. Infection control surveillance tools are valuable for monitoring operating room procedures and outcomes.
Blood Infections
This problem costs the healthcare system billions every year. The CDC works with many organizations to prevent it and educate everyone on updated systems, treatments, and protocols. Medical teams have made checklists and addressed IV and central line infections. Trained staff can put a central line in the arm, neck, groin, or chest, and they are left in place so doctors can quickly administer drugs or draw blood. Tracking software follows the outcome of patients and helps find solutions to repeating incidences.