Infection control in NICU

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Hi, NICU nurses!

I would like to get some advice on infection control in NICU.

I'm doing infection control projects in NICU right now, and I would like to know what other NICUs are doing to prevent nosocomical infections and blood culture contaminations. We have problem with eye contamination right now. Do you guys do anything to prevent it? I was thinking to put 2X2 on eye while you are suctioning baby with CPAP or canula?

What is the steps to get peripheral blood culture? What product you use to clean the skin?

When you clean your port/hub?We use just alcohole prep now. Do you have any recommendation?

Any suggestion??

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ROP exams with reusable instruments have been linked to hospital-acquired eye (and systemic) infections in the NICU. Check the following: do you send your eye exam instruments to sterile processing after every single exam, do the instruments undergo heat sterilization, does the ophthalmologist use gloves, are outside instruments brought into the NICU, are the instruments ever reused without proper sterilization (speculum and/or depressor, also check the ophthalmoscope). There are many scholarly articles on the subject, but here is a recent summary of this matter in peer-reviewed journal: Neonatal Network. 2010;29(3):143-151.

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CCMM

Thank you for your reply.I will check it out and see what we can do to prevent eye contamination! Thanks!

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Specializes in NICU, PICU, educator.

also go to ihi.org for bacteremia bundles about central line sepsis and VAP.

I can't say we have an overabundance of eye infections.

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