In addition to Standard Precautions, use Contact Precautions in the care of patients known or suspected to have a serious illness easily transmitted by direct patient contact or by indirect contact with items in the patient’s environment.
Illnesses requiring contact precautions may include, but are not limited to: presence of stool incontinence (may include patients with norovirus, rotavirus, or Clostridium difficile), draining wounds, uncontrolled secretions, pressure ulcers, presence of generalized rash, or presence of ostomy tubes and/or bags draining body fluids.
Additional Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for Contact Precautions
Contact precautions are in addition to Standard Precautions
PLUS
Gloves
- Wear gloves when touching the patient and the patient’s immediate environment or belongings
- Remove gloves promptly after use and discard before touching non-contaminated items or environmental surfaces, and before providing care to another patient
- Wash hands immediately after removing gloves
PLUS
Gowns
- Wear a fluid resistant, non-sterile gown if substantial contact with the patient or their environment is anticipated
- Do not wear the same gown for the care of more than one patient
Additional Procedures
Room
- Private room or cohort, (room) patients infected or colonized with the same organism
- Prioritize placement of patients in an exam room if they have stool incontinence, draining wounds and/or skin lesions that cannot be covered, or uncontrolled secretions
Patient
- Instruct patients with known or suspected infectious diarrhea to use a separate bathroom, if available; clean/disinfect the bathroom before it can be used again
How contact transmission occurs:
- Contact transmission can occur in two ways:
- Direct Contact Transmission
- Indirect Contact Transmission
Contact precautions are required to protect against either direct or indirect transmission.
Contact precautions are indicated for persons with gastrointestinal (diarrheal) illness, and incontinent persons including those who use incontinent products.
Direct Contact Transmission
- Involves body-surface to body-surface contact and physical transfer of microorganisms between a susceptible person (host) and an infected or colonized person.
- More often occurs between a health care worker and a patient than between patients.
Indirect Contact Transmission
- Involves contact of susceptible person (host) with a contaminated intermediate object such as needles, dressings, gloves or contaminated (unwashed) hands.
- Disease is more likely to develop following direct or indirect contact transmission when the pathogen is highly virulent or has a low infectious dose or the patient or health care worker is immunocompromised.
- Poor hand hygiene is most often cited as a cause of contact transmission.
see also>>Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for Infection Control
Last Updated: 10/20/2022
FAQs
What do you need for contact precautions? ›
Use personal protective equipment (PPE) appropriately, including gloves and gown. Wear a gown and gloves for all interactions that may involve contact with the patient or the patient's environment. Donning PPE upon room entry and properly discarding before exiting the patient room is done to contain pathogens.
What are contact precautions in healthcare? ›Contact Precautions are intended to prevent transmission of infectious agents, including epidemiologically important microorganisms, which are spread by direct or indirect contact with the patient or the patient's environment as described in I.B. 3. a.
What does the CDC term standard precautions apply to contact with _____? ›The CDC term "Standard Precautions" applies to contact with... all body fluids, secretions, and excretions except sweat, regardless of whether or not they contain blood.
What PPE is used for contact precautions? ›Health care personnel caring for patients on Contact Precautions must wear a gown and gloves for all interactions that involve contact with the patient and the patient environment. PPE should be donned prior to room entry and doffed at the point of exit.
Do you have to close the door for contact precautions? ›Tie the gown at your neck and waist, and put the cuffs of the gloves over the cuffs of the gown. Enter the patient's room. You can leave the door open or close it.
What is included in contact precautions quizlet? ›Hand hygiene, cover nose when coughing/sneezing, wear gown and gloves if soiling is likely, wear mask for splashing.