Redmond 1

Rebecca Redmond

Professor Malcolm Campbell

UWRT 1104

17 February 2017

Topic Proposal: The Power of Prevention

Introduction/Overview

I will be examining hospital acquired infections. Specifically, I will be looking at the

causes and preventions of hospital acquired infections. A hospital acquired infection, also known
as HAI, is defined as an infection developed after 48 hours of hospitalization or stay at a
healthcare facility that was not present at the time of admission (Kelly, Kristin.2012). These
Commented [AL1]: What about the consequences of
hospital acquired infections? Can hospitals be sued or shut
down?
Commented [AL2]: I hear this happens a lot with animals
at vets too. That could be a topic you could touch on...

infections cost cause healthcare facilities around 6.6 billion dollars annually. They are also

responsible for the death of over 99,000 people each year in the U.S.

Although these infections have posed a risk for quite some time, the topic of HAI has

become a relatively new hot topic in healthcare. Infection control has always been present, Commented [AL3]: Good, its current! Prof. will like that

even before the patient safety movement. In the late 1800s a man named Oliver Holmes

discovered the relationship between the transmission of germs from a surgeons hands to their

patient. During this same time, Ignaz Semmelweis figured out how rinsing ones hands reduced

infections. Over the years sterilization began to improve and is still constantly improving today. Commented [AL4]: How has it improved more recently?
What are the new technologies?
With this being said, even though handwashing was the first form of infection control it still

proves to be the most effective way today. Strangely, this technique is one of the hardest to Commented [AL5]: Is this the patient safety movement?
Are there any other key points to this policy?
enforce and many healthcare professionals do not perform proper handwashing technique

(Patient Safety).
 Redmond 2

There are many types of infections that can be acquired in a healthcare facility. The most

common include, C. Diff (infection in the intestinal tract), MRSA, I.V bloodstream infections, Commented [AL6]: Sounds painfulis it? What are the
symptoms to common infections?
catheter associated UTIs, as well as ventilator associated pneumonia. These infections pose a

large threat to elderly, children, and those with suppressed immune systems. Many of these

infections could be avoided by simple steps. For example, proper handwashing, isolation

precautions, proper sterilization of equipment, and use of personal protective equipment (gloves,

gowns, and masks).

The CDC (Center for Disease Control) has showed slow improvement in infection

control among hospitals all over the U.S. Since these infections are still prevalent, the CDC is Commented [AL7]: I dont know if Prof. allows graphs or
anything for this project but that might be a good thing to
include if he does.
coming up with new strategies to prevent them. A committee was established in 2008 through

the (HHS) Health and Human Services Department in order to track the preventions of HAI in

acute care hospitals. Even though these infections could never be totally eliminated the rates are

still higher than they should be. Some wonder if they are being taken as seriously as they should Commented [AL8]: What is an optimal rate which shows
that HAIs are being properly prevented?
be, and others feel as though committees make unrealistic protocols that could never be met in a

true healthcare setting. These debates are usually among healthcare workers and infection control

overseers. Debates are taking place in medical journals as well as case studies. Of course patients

and family members also have a say so in how they feel about these infections. When It comes to

the lives patients there can never be enough precautions. Commented [AL9]: The lives of patients?

I gathered the basics of my primary research from the open web and Google. However, as

I began to look deeper into my topic I found a lot of information from databases on the library

webpage. These included, WorldCat, and nursing databases such as PubMed, and The Gale

Encyclopedia of Nursing and Allied Health. Many of these databases included medical articles

and books on the preventions of infections and how they are occurring, which I plan to go more
 Redmond 3

in depth with for my extended inquiry project. I also found many statistics and the future of HAI

on the CDC website. Commented [AL10]: It seems this topic needs to mention
a few statistics to better understand the situation.

Initial Inquiry Question(s)

Is a hospital not the most sterile place to be while someone is sick? Why are hospital

acquired infections occurring so often? Are staff being to carless? Are antibiotics not being as

productive? All of these questions can become somewhat overwhelming so I have summed it up

into one main question of inquiry; how are hospital acquired infections occurring and what is

being done to prevent them?

My Interest in this Topic

I became intrigued about hospital acquired infections when I started working in a hospital

as a CNA. Working in a hospital has made me more aware of how sick people are and the special

precautions that need to be taken with each patient. Hospital acquired infections are also of
interest to me because my major is nursing. Learning about this topic will help me to be a better
nurse. I plan to work in a hospital setting and if I am aware of the cause of HAI then I will be
Commented [AL11]: Of course theres some motivation
to learn about HAIs because this will be a large part of your
career; washing hands, covering up, etc. Everything you do
will be centered around the prevention of spreading
bacteria.

able to prevent them from occurring. Informing myself of the seriousness of hospital acquired

infections will allow me to make sure that I never take any shortcuts in health care, such as

properly washing my hands. I am already aware that some nurses and doctors do take shortcuts

from seeing this occur from my own personal experience. However, I want to learn more about

what each shortcut can cause and how each infection can be prevented. Commented [AL12]: Very good reasons

Next Steps
To better understand the causes and preventions of HAI, I will be looking at the CDC

website to see statistics, the future preventions of HAI, and to better understand the demographic Commented [AL13]: The FBI also releases facts about
death reports, maybe you can find something there.
 Redmond 4

areas that are most effected, if there are any. I will look at databases such as NewsBank, and Commented [AL14]: Looking into hospital practices of
other countries and comparing their HAI rates to ours would
be a good thing to point out.
Academic Search Complete. On these databases I will search for the main causes of HAI, what

infections are most common, the cost to the patients, and what is being done to prevent them. I

will also look for articles and books specifically from nursing databases located on the Adkins Commented [AL15]: Atkins

Library webpage. Specific books that I plan to read include, Antibiotic Policies: Controlling

Hospital Acquired Infections, Patient Safety, and a journal article about hand hygiene and

hospital acquired infections. Commented [AL16]: Overall, seems like you have very
many credible sources!