Infection Control & Safety Practices Flashcards
7 cards from real LVN practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Infection Control & Safety Practices flashcards as text
Which patient scenario represents the highest risk for developing a healthcare-associated infection (HAI)?
Answer: An 80-year-old with an indwelling urinary catheter on broad-spectrum antibiotics
Invasive devices, advanced age, and antibiotic use are major HAI risk factors that compound each other in the elderly patient.
The nurse observes a colleague reusing a single-use item on a second patient. What is the appropriate response?
Answer: Report the observation to the charge nurse or supervisor
Reuse of single-use items violates infection control policy and patient safety standards; reporting to a supervisor ensures immediate corrective action.
Which cleaning agent is the gold standard for eliminating C. difficile spores from environmental surfaces?
Answer: Diluted bleach solution (1:10)
C. difficile spores are resistant to alcohol and most disinfectants; a 1:10 bleach (sodium hypochlorite) solution is sporicidal and recommended by the CDC.
A nurse prepares to change a central line dressing. Which action is essential to maintain aseptic technique?
Answer: Apply sterile drape and don sterile gloves before touching the insertion site
Central line dressing changes require sterile technique, including a sterile field, sterile drape, and sterile gloves, to prevent catheter-related bloodstream infections.
Which statement about the chain of infection is correct?
Answer: Breaking any single link in the chain prevents infection transmission
Infection transmission requires all links in the chain to be intact; interrupting any single link — portal of exit, transmission, or susceptible host — stops the process.
A nurse is setting up a wet-to-dry wound dressing. To maintain medical asepsis, the nurse should:
Answer: Use clean gloves to remove the old dressing and sterile gloves to apply the new one
Clean technique is acceptable for removing old dressings, but sterile technique with sterile gloves is required when applying the fresh dressing to a wound.
Which action best prevents ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP)?
Answer: Elevating the head of the bed to 30–45 degrees
Elevating the head of the bed 30–45 degrees reduces gastric reflux and aspiration of oral secretions into the lungs, the primary mechanism of VAP.