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Danger from nosocomial infection
Representatives from leading hospitals in Chennai and delegates from across Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala participated in the programme. Infections that are acquired while a patient is in a hospital are referred to as nosocomial infections; a term derived from 'nosos', the Greek word for 'disease'. There is a risk that patients may become infected because of their visits to hospitals and clinics. Often, nosocomial infections become apparent while the patient is still in the hospital but in some cases, symptoms may not show up until after the affected patient is discharged. About one patient in 10 acquires an infection as a direct result of being hospitalised.
Dr Rosenthal said patients who have frequented short-term procedure settings or who reside in chronic care places such as nursing homes have been found also to develop infections due to the same spectrum of pathogens. Individuals recently discharged from an acute or chronic health care facility are also at risk. Surveillance, identification of high-risk patients, new and better ways of prevention and decontamination as well as consistent and professional implementation of standing procedures are the core of curtailing the spread of these diseases from within hospitals, he added. Dr Radha Rajagopalan, director - Medical Education, Apollo Hospitals, said, “As health care providers, we are responsible for preventing and containing nosocomial infections. By identifying patients at risk, following standard precautions, hand washing and protecting through sterilisation and disinfection procedures we can control and eliminate many of the infections that may spread from within the hospital. We at Apollo Hospitals ensure that all infection controlled precautions are carried out as per international standards, thereby making it a safer environment, one free from diseases for all patients.” It is believed that as much as 80 per cent of nosocomial infections are caused by the microbial flora that patient bring with them upon admission to the hospital. This "stay-at-home" flora appears to be opportunistic to the new environment and is able to take advantage of new routes that medical procedures offer, according to Dr Rosenthal.
Hand washing with antiseptics and the use of disinfectants on inanimate objects and environmental surfaces have been shown to decrease the spread of potential pathogens to patients, he stressed. The Apollo Hospitals group is the third largest health service provider in the world and the largest in Asia. They have a presence across 37 locations in India as hospitals and clinics, pharmacies, IT outsourcing, medical education, telemedicine to reach out to the rural populace, hospital management projects and insurance as ‘The Family Health Plan’. RR
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A guest lecture to inform medical practitioners on key aspects relating to nosocomial infections was organised by
Other nosocomial infections, perhaps 10 per cent to 20 per cent, develop following contamination with microbial organisms found within the hospital environment, often via the hands or instruments of health care workers or contact with contaminated hospital materials, he added.
