Isolation Precautions Quiz

Recommendations for Isolation Precautions

• There are four categories of recommendations for isolation precautions: IB (strongly recommended), IC (required), II (suggested), and no recommendation (insufficient evidence).
• Standard Precautions apply to all patients in all healthcare settings and include infection prevention practices such as hand hygiene, gloves, gowns, masks, eye protection, and face shields.
• New additions to Standard Precautions include safer injection practices, special lumbar puncture procedures, and respiratory hygiene/cough etiquette.
• Transmission-based Precautions are used for patients with specific diseases or pathogens and are based on the mode of transmission of the specific pathogen.
• Contact Precautions are used for diseases transmitted by contact with the patient or the patient’s environment.
• Disease caused by organisms that have been demonstrated to cause heavy environmental contamination require gowns and gloves on room entry.
• A single room is preferred for patients on Contact Precautions, but patients with the same disease or organism may share a room.
• Wear a gown and gloves on room entry and change them between patients even if both patients share a room and both are on Contact Precautions.
• Limit patient transport outside the room to medically necessary purposes and inform the receiving department of the Isolation Precautions status of the patient.
• Cover or contain potentially infectious body fluids before transport.
• The transporter should discard contaminated personal protective equipment (PPE) before transport and don clean PPE to handle the patient at the destination.
• Regulatory agencies and quality groups encourage the implementation of all Category IA, IB, and IC recommendations by healthcare facilities.

Infection Control Precautions: Contact, Droplet, and Airborne

• Contact Precautions are discontinued when signs and symptoms of the infection have resolved or according to pathogen-specific recommendations.
• Droplet Precautions prevent transmission of diseases caused by large respiratory droplets that are generated by coughing, sneezing, or talking.
• Patient placement for those on Droplet Precautions is preferred in single rooms, but patients with the same disease may share a room with at least 3 feet of spatial separation and privacy curtains between them.
• Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for those on Droplet Precautions includes wearing a surgical mask on room entry and changing PPE between patients.
• Patient transport for those on Droplet Precautions should be limited to medically necessary purposes, and patients must wear a surgical mask and follow respiratory hygiene and cough etiquette.
• Airborne Precautions are used to prevent transmission of infectious organisms that remain suspended in the air and travel great distances.
• Patient placement for those on Airborne Precautions is in an airborne infection isolation room (AIIR) with negative air pressure relative to the corridor and at least 6 to 12 air exchanges with direct exhaust of air to the outside.
• PPE for those on Airborne Precautions includes wearing a fit-tested NIOSH-approved N-95 or higher level respirator for respiratory protection when the patient has suspected or confirmed pulmonary tuberculosis or is undergoing procedures where infectious tuberculosis skin lesions would be aerosolized.
• Respiratory protection is also recommended for all healthcare workers whether vaccinated or unvaccinated against smallpox because of the possibility of genetically altered smallpox virus.
• There are no recommendations for healthcare workers who are immune to measles and chickenpox (varicella) to wear respiratory PPE.
• Patient transport for those on Airborne Precautions should be limited to essential medical purposes, and patients must wear a surgical mask and observe respiratory hygiene and cough etiquette.
• Transport personnel do not need to wear respiratory protection during transport if the patient is masked and the skin lesions are covered.

Test your knowledge on Isolation Precautions in Healthcare Settings! From hospitals to home care, this quiz covers the essential practices that prevent the spread of infections. Challenge yourself with questions on the different isolation categories and their specific requirements. Use keywords like infection prevention, healthcare delivery, and long-term care to ace this quiz!