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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsMom, a nurse during the polio epidemic, no vaccine, always promoted Aseptic technique
Bacteria are everywhere, and some are good for us while others are harmful. Bacteria, viruses, and other microorganisms that cause disease are called pathogens. To protect patients from harmful bacteria and other pathogens during medical procedures, healthcare providers use aseptic technique.
Aseptic technique means using practices and procedures to prevent contamination from pathogens. It involves applying the strictest rules to minimize the risk of infection. Healthcare workers use aseptic technique in surgery rooms, clinics, outpatient care centers, and other health care settings.
The outcome of aseptic technique depends on whether all healthcare professionals thoroughly follow all procedures. According to the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Internal Medicine, 50 percent of HAIs are preventable.
Healthcare professionals are responsible for following clean and aseptic techniques. If you notice that someone fails to wash hands or sterilize equipment, speak up. Doing so may save you or a loved one from potentially fatal infections.
https://www.healthline.com/health/aseptic-technique#complications
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MuseRider
(34,120 posts)kept our patients in good shape in the ICU. We washed our hands before going in and before leaving the room each and every time. We washed our hands until the were permanently chapped, no time for lotion and it was not considered something we should do until we left the unit. I hate going into hospitals now with those stupid hand sanitizers. Soap and water are the best way especially when dealing with serious infection.
Every dressing change was done with aseptic technique, no slapping on a bandage. Bandage off for any reason called for a new bandage. Masks were essential so you did not breathe on anyone. It has become so lax in some places it just gives me the creeps.
Everyone needs to remember, if they are using alcohol to disinfect they must wipe for 20 seconds and then let dry for 20 seconds before it can be considered clean.
frazzled
(18,402 posts)it was a ward (cancer patients with little immune system) where visitors had to wash before entering. A receptionist buzzed you into an antechamber that contained a sink, soap, and paper towels, with a door at the other end. You had to wash at the sink before that other door could be automatically opened.
That's not typical though in today's hospitals. Mostly, it's hand sanitizer dispensers outside each door. I often will use it when visiting someone, and then use the room's bathroom to wash my hands.
MuseRider
(34,120 posts)I have not been in a ward like that for a long time. It is good to know there are still places like that.
applegrove
(118,793 posts)was meeting her for lunch one day and met her at the hospital. A patient had a communicable disease had died and granny had scrubbed the bed, the floor, the walls, the equipment and the windows and doors. She apologized to my grown aunt and said she had to be sure and was going to scrub everything all over again so she couldn't make lunch. No doubt the heroes in this world right now are the healthcare workers - in the US it is an industry of people of various ethnithities. Don't tell Trump he will not be getting Time Magazine's People of the Year again this year.
Miigwech
(3,741 posts)they fight on the front lines, yes they do! My Mom, blessing to you on the Spirit side for being the hero you were during the Polio epidemic of 1949.
Prior to the 20th century polio infections were rarely seen in infants before 6 months of age and most cases occurred in children 6 months to 4 years of age.[19] Young children who contract polio generally suffer only mild symptoms, but as a result they become permanently immune to the disease.[20] In developed countries during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, improvements were being made in community sanitation, including improved sewage disposal and clean water supplies. Better hygiene meant that infants and young children had fewer opportunities to encounter and develop immunity to polio. Exposure to poliovirus was therefore delayed until late childhood or adult life, when it was more likely to take the paralytic form.[19]
In children, paralysis due to polio occurs in one in 1000 cases, while in adults, paralysis occurs in one in 75 cases.[21] By 1950, the peak age incidence of paralytic poliomyelitis in the United States had shifted from infants to children aged 5 to 9 years; about one-third of the cases were reported in persons over 15 years of age.[22] Accordingly, the rate of paralysis and death due to polio infection also increased during this time.[1] In the United States, the 1952 polio epidemic was the worst outbreak in the nation's history, and is credited with heightening parents’ fears of the disease and focusing public awareness on the need for a vaccine.[23] Of the 57,628 cases reported that year 3,145 died and 21,269 were left with mild to disabling paralysis.[23][24]
Response to applegrove (Reply #2)
abqtommy This message was self-deleted by its author.
applegrove
(118,793 posts)Response to applegrove (Reply #5)
abqtommy This message was self-deleted by its author.
Miigwech
(3,741 posts)... all the wars, all the destitute people over the years ... they were there and they are here for us now, a million thanks.
abqtommy
(14,118 posts)and I returned to the U.S. from West Pakistan I was vaccinated for polio. A brief search shows that the polio vaccine was available in the U.S. in 1954*. I support aseptic procedures but would appreciate
hearing the full and accurate story...
* https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/children-receive-first-polio-vaccine
