CDC clarifies SARS infection control
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta issued the following guidance for infection control measures when caring for a patient with a suspected case of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS):
For the inpatient setting:
If a suspected SARS patient is admitted to the hospital, infection control personnel should be notified immediately. Infection control measures for inpatients should include:
- Standard precautions (e.g., hand hygiene); in addition to routine standard precautions, health care personnel should wear eye protection for all patient contact.
- Contact precautions (e.g., use of gown and gloves for contact with the patient or their environment).
- Airborne precautions (e.g., an isolation room with negative pressure relative to the surrounding area and use of an N95 filtering disposable respirator for people entering the room).
If airborne precautions cannot be fully implemented, patients should be placed in a private room, and all people entering the room should wear N95 respirators. Where possible, a qualitative fit test should be conducted for N95 respirators. (Detailed information on fit testing can be accessed at www.osha.gov/SLTC/etools/respiratory/oshafiles/fittesting1.html.)
If N95 respirators are not available for health care personnel, then surgical masks should be worn. Regardless of the availability of facilities for airborne precautions, standard and contact precautions should be implemented for all suspected SARS patients.
For the outpatient setting:
If possible, suspected SARS patients, on arrival to the outpatient or ambulatory setting, e.g., clinic or emergency department (ED), should be evaluated in a separate assessment area to determine if they meet the case definition for suspected SARS and require isolation. A surgical mask should be placed on the patient if possible.
All health care personnel should wear N95 respirators while taking care of patients with suspected SARS. Precautions should be used when evaluating or transporting patients (e.g., emergency medical technicians), or in any ambulatory health care setting (e.g., ED or clinic personnel). If N95 respirators are not available, personnel should wear surgical masks.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta issued the following guidance for infection control measures when caring for a patient with a suspected case of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS).You have reached your article limit for the month. Subscribe now to access this article plus other member-only content.
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