Case Studies
Case Study #1:
There is often no running water in the postoperative ward of the local maternity hospital. When running water is not available, the doctors generally do not wash their hands before and after examining each client. When examination gloves are available, the doctors wear them while examining the clients, but do not wash their hands after taking off the gloves.
Who is at risk of infections in this situation? Why?
Case Study #2:
Anita works in a woman's health clinic and is responsible for charting client's blood pressure, temperature, and weight, and for drawing a few drops of blood from clients' fingers to check their hematocrit. She does not wear gloves during any part of this process but does wash her hands before seeing the next client.
Is this an appropriate infection prevention practice? Why?
Case Study #3:
A rural health clinic has difficulty keeping supplies adequately stocked and sometimes has more condoms than examination gloves. When glove supplies run low, the doctors use the condoms to cover the fingers of the vaginal examination hand and use their bare hand to examine the pelvic/abdominal area.
Is this an acceptable infection prevention practice? Why?
Case Study #4:
A local hospital that has its own laundry department routinely picks up and delivers clean linens to the various departments in the afternoon. It is common practice for the laundry employee to use bare hands to collect the dirty linens since they are stored in plastic bags. After picking up the bags, the employee assesses how much clean linen is needed and leaves an adequate supply before moving to the next department. The clean linen is kept on the top shelf of the pick-up cart.
Is this an appropriate practice? Why?
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