Prevention of Sepsis in the Clinical Setting Research Paper

Prevention of Sepsis in the Clinical Setting - Research Paper Example Similar treatments are used for the cure of both sepsis and septicemia since both of them are normally associated with the presence of aggressive bacteria in the body system of a patient. This requires treatment using strong antibiotics to fight the infection. Patients may also be admitted in ICU for a while so as to monitor the treatment of the infection. Patients suffering from sepsis may experience multi-organ failure since the inflammation spreads and generates a cascading sequence of medical problems as the body tries to fight off the infection (Brozanski, 2003). Prevention of Sepsis There is a common term people in the medical field love to use and it goes, â€Å"Prevention is better than cure.† This is quite true since curing an infection is expensive both on the hospital and the patient. It requires a use of resources that would otherwise be used for other reasons. This therefore calls for infection control a discipline that targets the prevention of healthcare-related infections. There are a number of factors that may lead to the spread of infections in a clinical setting. The infections maybe from patient to patient, from staff to patient, from patient to staff, and from staff to staff (Dyson & Singer, January 2009). There are a number of ways of preventing sepsis, but the most common and effective way is by ensuring hand hygiene, and this is done by constant hand washing. Hand washing In the clinical setting, hand washing is commonly known as the primary weapon of fighting infections. The main reason for hand washing is to reduce microbial in the healthcare setting so as to reduce the risk of nosocomial infections. Hand hygiene may be a major problem in gigantic health facilities in which several patients are treated and in rapid succession. Infection control is meant to reduce the spread of infection and provide a safe environment for every patient (Riedeman, Guo, & Ward, 2003). This has become extremely necessary due to the emergence of anti biotic resistant organisms. Examples of antibiotic resistant microorganisms include methicilin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) and vancomycin-resistant Enterococci (VRE). It is vital to note that there is evidence that shows that removal of antibiotic resistant organisms (AROs) from the hands by washing with detergent or soap and water is less effective than by the use of an antiseptic agent. For that reason, an antiseptic agent must be used in high risk areas within the clinic, with high risk patients especially those suffering from immune-deficient diseas