Q1.5: Identify poor practices that may lead to the spread of infection.

Answer

Poor practices that can lead to the spread of infection can be:

i. Poor practice: e.g. coughing and sneezing without covering mouth, poor personal
hygiene, not washing hands between contact with individuals.

ii. Soiled linen: storage (should be in labelled bags), not separating infected and
noninfected linen, not washing at correct temperatures.

iii. Clinical waste: e.g. infected matter, dressings, used plasters, needles: o storage
(should be in colour-coded bags).

iv. Poor hand hygiene: spread of germs from one patient to another or spread for hands to
surfaces.

v. Dirty equipment: having dirty equipment which is not cleaned between patients can
spread infection very fast lots of bacteria can be spread on a blood pressure cuff for
example.

vi. Over flowing waste bins, personal hygiene, keeping work spaces clean and tidy and
washing of uniform.