NURS325 Integrated Pathophysiology And Clinical Pharmacology

Introduction:

Germs can be spread from one surface to another through various means such as our hands, contaminated containers, or even through the air. However, most common ailments that arise from the result in diarrhea and aching stomach come as a result of bacteria and other worms being transmitted from the contaminated surfaces to the mouths of the hosts through their hands. As a result, it is of key importance is hands of both the patients and caregivers are washed thoroughly and effectively to emit any chances of spreading the bacteria by 99%. This essay will hugely focus on the reason why washing hands inappropriately result in further transmission of ailments.

Correction plan for inappropriate hand washing

The STEEP framework

The STEEP is basically a framework laid down that aims at meeting the proposed Triple Aim that includes population health, better per capita cost, and care experience. These aspects of STEEP include the likes of Safe, Timely, Effective, Efficient, Equitable, and Patient-centered in particular. Safety comes in by ascertaining that the nurses have enough training, time aspect comes in by making sure that the nurses are available 24/7 for the patients and efficiency in that the nurses are capable of making sure that can provide their patients with care that is evidence-based. Efficiency comes in through the affirmation that the nurses are always at the bedside of their patients delivering care, equitability through the assurance that the care delivered meets the set standards of care, and patient-centered in that all services delivered put the patient at the frontline (Beattie, Murphy, Atherton, & Lauder, 2015).

Washing hands and STEEP framework

As discussed earlier on, having a dirty hand, especially to the ill, is a huge assurance of more contamination and a possible cause of additional ailments that may affect the mouth, esophagus, and the stomach. As a result, keen and effective washing of the hands of the patients and other persons not only reduces the chances of contamination by also assures the well-being of a person. After washing of these hands, drying them in bacteria-free areas may aid in the total reduction of the contamination to other people.

How washing hands meet the STEEP aims

By washing the patients’ hands with the aid of the qualified personnel aids in the attainment of these aims. This is because the nurses have the necessary skills and training, such as washing them for about 15 to 30 seconds using clean water enhances patient’s safety (Ballard, 2014). This practice ascertains that the patients are given the chance to be served first as they are in an unsuitable condition more than other persons thus being patient-centered (Compton, 2015). It is equitable if their hands are washed and/or aided in washing by the authorized nurses in that the nurses have the standards to be met in their minds and it is easier to meet them.  In summary, washing of the patients’ hands by the qualified caregivers makes sure that all the STEEP aspects are met.

Evaluation of the plan

The evaluation of the effective hand washing plan can be done with a cheap method that focuses on key clinical guidelines. These guidelines may involve patient involvement, external assessment of the plan, systematic searching of evidence that the washing was conducted, and making sure that the plan implementation is updated accordingly (Ejemot-Nwadiaro, et. al, 2015). The cost of implementing this plan is cheap but it may cost about $50,000 in the assessment especially if the assessment team comes from an external source.

References:

Ballard, D. J. (2014). The Guide to Achieving STEEP™ Health Care: Baylor Scott & White Health’s Quality Improvement Journey. Productivity Press.

Beattie, M., Murphy, D. J., Atherton, I., & Lauder, W. (2015). Instruments to measure patient experience of healthcare quality in hospitals: a systematic review. Systematic reviews, 4(1), 97.

Compton, J. (2015). Achieving Safe Health Care: Delivery of Safe Patient Care at Baylor Scott & White Health. CRC Press.

Ejemot-Nwadiaro, R. I., Ehiri, J. E., Arikpo, D., Meremikwu, M. M., & Critchley, J. A. (2015). Hand washing promotion for preventing diarrhoea. The Cochrane database of systematic reviews, (9), 1.