Infection Control Policies and Healthcare in Australia: An Overview

This report delves into the critical aspects of infection control policies within the Australian healthcare system. It begins by defining infection and the necessity of infection control policies, emphasizing the importance of the 'Australian Guidelines for the Prevention and Control of Infection in Healthcare.' The report explores the rationale behind these policies, highlighting the risks of sepsis and the role of guidelines in preparedness. It examines the structure of the guidelines, including essential methods of transmission and risk management. The role of nurses in infection control is discussed, addressing issues like workload stress, nursing shortages, and their impact on patient safety, including lapses in the organization. The report outlines the hospital's enforced prevention methods, such as hand hygiene, the use of personal protective equipment, and airborne infection control protocols. It concludes by summarizing the creation and implementation of these policies, emphasizing the importance of a nationally recognized approach to infection prevention and control, supported by a risk management structure applicable across various healthcare settings.

Running head: HEALTHCARE POLICIES IN AUSTRALIA
Infection Control Policy in Australia
Student Name
University Name
Author Note

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Introduction
The invasion by disease-causing agents in an organism and subsequent multiplication
causing a reaction in the host tissues by producing toxins is called infection. The discipline to
prevent nosocomial or healthcare-associated infection is known as the controls to curb
infection (Mitchell et al., 2015). This is the primary aspect which is important in the
infrastructure of the hospital. The number of measures deployed by the hospital to lessen the
threat of infections sustained by the patient during their stay is called infection control
policies (Hall et al., 2015). Australians have been suffering from infections caused by viruses,
bacteria or protozoan from a long time which often required medical attention (Barr,
Vijaykrishna & Sullivan, 2016). It is the liability of the hospital to offer the patients with
quality service for healthcare and a safe working environment to its employees. The
preventive controls stipulated by the organization ensure a framework that can be used for
varied healthcare settings (Felemban, John & Shaban, 2015). There is a current policy,
Australian Guidelines for the Prevention and Control of Infection in Healthcare, regarding
infection control which is passed in Australia in May 2019 (Preventing infection, NHMRC,
2019). This ensures the nursing community to adhere to the guidelines and protocols of the
organization strictly.
Why are Policies required in a Hospital?
Sepsis is the most common form of infection that is observed in elderly and children admitted
in the hospital. Strengthening and harmonizing the development of strategies in infection
control in a hospital helps is successful decrease in the spreading of infections. The policies
that are being enforced by the government to be taken up by the organizations helps in
preparedness and responsibility of the hospital in an event of an outbreak (Felemban, John &
Shaban, 2015). When a patient acquires an infection while in the hospital, careful evaluation

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of the cause should be carried out as specified by the appropriate policy. This will help in
careful understanding of the grave issue and better utilisation of the policy. Due to the
incorporation of the policy in the organization, promotion for infection control and its
prevention will be on a more serious level (Felemban, John & Shaban, 2015). The awareness
of the infection should be clearly conducted by the professionals such that the general public
is aware of the graveness that the infection will cause once it is contracted.
The structure of the guideline
The guidelines are based on an awareness of the methods of transmission and risk
management of infectious agents, efficient job methods that minimize the risk of spread of
infectious agents, authority structures that promote the execution, tracking and reporting of
infection prevention and job procedures and agreement with laws and norms (World Health
Organization, 2016). Part A provides background information that everybody who works in
health care should read. This involves significant essentials of infection prevention and
control, such as the primary methods of infectious agent transmission and the implementation
of principles of risk management. Part B is particular to healthcare workers ' practice and
support employees, outlining efficient job methods that minimize the danger of infectious
agent transmission. Section B1 defines normal precautions that are always used to minimize
the danger of infectious agents being transmitted. Section B2 describes transmission-based
defences to guide employees in the presence of alleged or known infectious agents
representing an enhanced transmission danger. Section B3 describes a multi-resistant
organism (MRO) management approaches or epidemic scenarios. Section B4 describes
processes for risk detection and implementation for certain procedures of normal and
transmission-based precautions. Section B5 contains additional data to help in the
implementation of precautions based on standard and transmission (World Health

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Organization, 2016). Part C defines the management duties of healthcare institutions,
including management organizations that promote the execution, tracking and reporting of
efficient job procedures. The chapters outline the primary elements of a system strategy to
facility-extensive infection prevention and control, providing advice on management and
personnel duties, healthcare workers protection, educational and training criteria for all
employees, facilities design and refurbishment factors, and other significant tasks such as
monitoring and antibiotic stewardship (World Health Organization, 2016).
Nurse’s role in causing infections
The major interaction with patients is carried out by nurses, who make them
susceptible to the infections. There are certain protocols which must be adhered by the nurses
when they are present in the organization. There are hospital protocols concerning to manage
the spreading of infection in the hospital (Halton et al., 2015). Nurses have been performing
these lapses in the organization for a long time. Nursing issues are faced by nurses
worldwide. The issues mainly revolve around the workload due to the shortage of nurse
availability (Coventry, Maslin‐Prothero & Smith, 2015). It has been an issue more in recent
years because of the deterioration of the quality of education provided to the students.
Nursing students have been experiencing problems in grasping the advancements in the
healthcare sector with time. They have been going through the traditional knowledge of
nursing practice which makes developments and its implementation in the healthcare sector
difficult.
Workload stress in nurses was the most common problem that led patients to become
infected. Nurse recruitment in Australia has been declining for quite a few years. This is
encountered because of the gap in understanding in senior nurses and new nurses (Coventry,
Maslin‐Prothero & Smith, 2015). This has resulted in low recruitment and an intense

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workload on senior nurses has dropped. The pressure to offer the care to the patients placed
under them has improved on the nurses. This pressure creates stress in the nurses in their
nursing practice for which they make mistakes (Coventry, Maslin‐Prothero & Smith, 2015).
Because of this, nurses operate overtime that creates mental stress in them and they are
unable to conduct their duties effectively. Instances of medication errors, infection mistakes
on the part of the hospital nurse have been recorded (Coventry, Maslin‐Prothero & Smith,
2015). False medicines were given to patients without seeing their medical records and
patients were handled without following the infection control protocol.
Overtime nurses are hampering their mental well-being. This creates stress for them
and improves their inefficiency in carrying out their duties. Insufficient nursing supply
hampers the nurse's professional capacity (Coventry, Maslin‐Prothero & Smith, 2015).
Because of the appropriate shortage, the nurses operate overtime and thus lose compulsory
organisational training to further develop their abilities. Their mental well-being is hindered
when nurses operate beyond their shift times. In offering patients with the greatest care, they
lose their sleep and operate beyond their ordinary ability (Coventry, Maslin‐Prothero &
Smith, 2015). Failed recognition of their sacrifices by the governing body contributes to the
nurses ' discontent, which further escalates to withdrawal from work. Developing nursing
skills is a significant element that the organisation wants to address in order to ensure that
patients receive quality care. This will allow patients to be happy and reduces the patient's
risk of infection.
Prevention Methods enforced by the hospital
The hospital has implemented precautionary measures on its staff to guarantee a
healthy working atmosphere for the staff as well as a secure atmosphere for the patient. After
washing their hands with soap for about 20 seconds, the nurses must always approach the

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patients (Drey et al., 2017). After each patient touch, after using the toilet, after managing
filthy material, and after eating, these should be retained by each specialist. Wash-down
hands after touching blood, secretions, body fluids, excretions, and contaminated products,
whether gloves are needed or not. Patients are told to use waterless disinfected before and
after use of the toilet and to prevent infection before eating meals. Nurses wear gloves when
they come into contact with blood, mucous membranes or any fluid (Drey et al., 2017). If
splashes or sprays of body fluids or blood are likely to come into connection with the body or
clothes of the nurse, non-sterile gowns should be worn. It is appropriate to remove the soiled
dress after the operation and wash the hands.
Infections spread by airborne agents involve unique avoidance protocols. Hospital
professionals are needed to carry out special air handling and ventilation requirements to
guarantee quality care to avoid patient infections (Allen et al., 2017). Wearing eyeglasses to
safeguard the pathogens from entering the eye can prevent infections spread by droplets.
Coughing, sneezing, speaking, suctioning and other comparable activities produce a lot of
pathogens that can move through the air and transmit patients ' diseases (Allen et al., 2017).
To prevent transmitting pathogens, the nurses must guarantee that they wear masks in front of
the patient. In order to prevent germs from travelling to them and causing an infection, the
patient must be held in a private space (Allen et al., 2017). Wearing masks and maintaining
the patient in a personal space will guarantee the patient's immediate care with minimal
pathogens exposure and infection.
It is the responsibility of the nurse to guarantee that the patient is admitted to the
corresponding department. To determine the cause for which they are admitted, the nurse's
evaluation must be performed in the original phases and personalized care must be given.
There are cases where patients are admitted to a hospital with a disease such as tuberculosis
that improves the likelihood of spreading the pathogen. In these instances, airborne isolation

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rooms for infection are developed in a hospital to guarantee their staff and other patients '
security (Berlanga et al., 2018). Before admission, patients must comply with the policy of
isolation owing to the disease they suffer. Nurses wearing masks and appropriate gowns will
provide the meals to the patients in their isolation rooms. This will guarantee that the patient
has their meals and that nurses are protected by spreading diseases in the hospital to them and
others.
Conclusion
The rules were created to create a nationally acknowledged approach to prevention
and control of infections, concentrating on key values and action priorities. They offer a
foundation for the development of comprehensive protocols and procedures for local-specific
infection control and its prevention for healthcare workforces and healthcare equipment. This
strategy is supported by a threat management structure to guarantee that the fundamental
principles of infection control and prevention can be applied to a broad spectrum of
healthcare environments including long-term care centres, office-based practice, distant
health services, and community nursing and emergency services. The proof base for the rules
reports the largest risk level of transmission of infection in the healthcare environment and
has been pinched predominantly from the critical care environment. However, case studies
have been included that provide examples of risk assessments to assist demonstrate how these
suggestions can be applied to other environments.

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