CBIC Isolation Precautions 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A patient arrives from a long-term care facility with an unknown infectious status. Which precautions should be initiated empirically?
- No precautions until culture results return
- Contact Precautions (Correct answer)
- Droplet Precautions
- Standard Precautions only
Correct answer: Contact Precautions
Empiric Contact Precautions are recommended for patients from long-term care facilities pending assessment due to the high prevalence of MDROs.
Question 2: Which element is NOT included in Standard Precautions?
- Hand hygiene
- Use of gloves for contact with blood
- N95 respirator for all patient care (Correct answer)
- Safe injection practices
Correct answer: N95 respirator for all patient care
N95 respirators are required only for Airborne Precautions, not as part of Standard Precautions for all patient care.
Question 3: A patient with disseminated herpes zoster (shingles) should be placed on which precaution level?
- Standard Precautions only
- Contact Precautions only
- Airborne and Contact Precautions (Correct answer)
- Droplet and Contact Precautions
Correct answer: Airborne and Contact Precautions
Disseminated herpes zoster can be transmitted via both airborne (varicella-zoster virus) and direct contact routes, requiring both Airborne and Contact Precautions.
Question 4: What is the correct order for REMOVING (doffing) PPE to prevent self-contamination?
- Mask → Gown → Gloves → Hand hygiene
- Gloves → Hand hygiene → Gown → Mask → Hand hygiene (Correct answer)
- Gown → Gloves → Mask → Hand hygiene
- Gloves → Gown → Hand hygiene → Mask → Hand hygiene
Correct answer: Gloves → Hand hygiene → Gown → Mask → Hand hygiene
The CDC-recommended doffing sequence is: gloves first, then hand hygiene, then gown, then mask/respirator, then final hand hygiene.
Question 5: Which pathogen is a primary indication for Protective Environment (PE) precautions rather than standard isolation precautions?
- MRSA
- Aspergillus species (Correct answer)
- VRE
- C. difficile
Correct answer: Aspergillus species
Protective Environment precautions, including HEPA filtration and positive-pressure rooms, are used to protect severely immunocompromised patients from environmental molds like Aspergillus.
Question 6: A visitor who had close contact with a patient on Droplet Precautions asks if they need to wear a mask. The ICP should advise:
- No, visitors are not required to wear PPE
- Yes, a surgical mask should be worn when within 6 feet of the patient (Correct answer)
- Yes, an N95 respirator is required
- Only healthcare workers need to follow Droplet Precautions
Correct answer: Yes, a surgical mask should be worn when within 6 feet of the patient
Visitors should wear a surgical mask when within 3–6 feet of a patient on Droplet Precautions to reduce exposure risk.
Question 7: Which scenario correctly applies the principle of 'source containment' in Droplet Precautions?
- Placing the patient in a negative-pressure room
- Having the patient wear a surgical mask during transport (Correct answer)
- Requiring all staff to wear N95 respirators
- Cohorting patients with different respiratory illnesses together
Correct answer: Having the patient wear a surgical mask during transport
Having the infectious patient wear a surgical mask during transport is source containment, reducing droplet dispersal to the environment.
CBIC Isolation Precautions 3
A patient arrives from a long-term care facility with an unknown infectious status.
Which precautions should be initiated empirically?