What it means
In infection control, precautions are sets of practices that stop germs spreading. Standard precautions are used with every client: hand hygiene, gloves and other protective equipment for contact with body fluids, and safe handling of sharps. Transmission-based precautions are added for certain infections: contact, droplet and airborne. The word is also used for safety measures such as seizure precautions, fall precautions and bleeding precautions.
For the nurse
Contact precautions: gown and gloves (for example MRSAMUR-suh, or said as lettersMethicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, a staph bacterium that many common antibiotics cannot kill.Full entry , C. difficilesee dif-uh-SEELClostridioides difficile, a spore-forming bacterium that can infect the colon (the large intestine).Full entry ). Droplet precautions: a surgical mask within close range (for example influenza). Airborne precautions: a negative-pressure room and an N95 respirator (for example tuberculosistoo-ber-kyoo-LOH-sisAn infection caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis, which most often attacks the lungs.tubercul/o small swelling-osis abnormal conditionFull entry , measles, chickenpox).
At a glance
| Spanish | precaución |
|---|---|
| Also written | precautions |
Related terms
infectious disease
An illness caused by a germ such as a bacterium, virus, fungus or parasite.
pathogen
A germ, such as a bacterium, virus, fungus or parasite, that can cause disease.
tuberculosis
An infection caused by the bacterium Mycobacterium tuberculosis, which most often attacks the lungs.
hand hygiene
Cleaning the hands with soap and water or an alcohol-based hand rub.