The Infection Prevention and Control (IPC)  team work with all grades and disciplines of the staff within St. Vincent’s Private Hospital to promote the health and safety of patients, staff and visitors. This is achieved by minimising or eliminating the risk of transmission of infection. Our work includes:

• Infection prevention and control advice
• Education of staff
• Management of infection
• Audits
• Surveillance
• Development and implementation of IPC policies, procedures and guidelines
• Liaison with project office and technical services department on issues related to hospital building and maintenance and future developments within the hospital

Hand hygiene

Our doctors, nurses and all other staff who may examine you, or help care for you, are trained in the correct hand washing procedure to minimise the risk of infection.

Hand foam dispensers are also available at the entrance to each ward, in all public areas, and outside each patient room. The sink in each of our patient rooms is designed and intended specifically for hand washing. The sink in the en-suite bathroom is intended for patients personal hygiene needs.

It is also important for patients to wash their hands before meals and after using the toilet. If you cannot get to a wash hand basin for any reason, please ask one of your nurses for assistance.

Visitors are also reminded to use hand sanitisers on entering and exiting the hospital.

Screening programme

Here at St. Vincent’s Private Hospital, we have a unique screening programme in place, where each patient admitted for an overnight stay, is screened for carriage of MRSA. This screen consists of a swab taken from the nose and groin.

This helps us to identify potential infection risks, provide treatment where appropriate and adopt the necessary precautions.

Further routine screens are taken from patients undergoing surgery on the bowel or hepatobiliary tract, those admitted to HDU and those undergoing chemotherapy. This consists of a rectal swab to detect VRE.

Information leaflets regarding MRSA, VRE and other healthcare-associated infections are available on the wards. Please ask one of your nurses for further information.

Visitors

Healthy people are not at risk of getting infections or spreading infections by visiting the hospital. Visitors should, however, be encouraged to clean their hands before and after visiting and should not visit the hospital if they have an infection themselves, e.g. colds/flu/vomiting/diarrhoea.  If in doubt they should speak to the nurse in charge.

Please discourage visitors from sitting on your bed and from using the en-suite bathroom in your room. There are toilet facilities available in each ward/department for visitors to use.

Visiting may be restricted when there is an increased amount of diarrhoea and/or vomiting in the hospital or community. Please discourage young children from visiting whenever possible.

If you have any questions regarding infection control while in hospital, an IPC Nurse is available Monday to Friday to speak with you or your family.