Urinary Tract Practice

Practice for Infection Prevention
I am a Medical Assistant in ambulatory care. Today, a patient visited our office with symptoms of Urinary Tract Infection (UTI). I check in the patient by verifying his name, date of birth and address congruent with his photo ID and his insurance card. When front office transit the patient’s file over to the back office, I pick up the patient’s chart and bring the patient to the exam room to measure his vital sign. Before proceeding, I record chief complaints and symptoms of the patient. More specifically, I ask the patient when he first noticed symptoms, nature, location, frequency and duration of pain, or if the patient has had the same or a similar condition in the past. I also ask the treatment the patient
First, I transit to a designated hand-washing area at which liquid antibacterial soap, nailbrush, paper towels, warm running water and regular waste container are prepared. I remove jewelry or watch on hands or fingers, because the wearing of jewelry increases the number of micro-organisms on the hands. And then I stand close to the sink without allowing clothing to touch the sink as the sink is considered contaminated and reaching over the sink increases the risk of becoming contaminated by micro-organisms. I turn on the faucets, using a clean paper towel as the faucets are considered contaminated because they can contain bacteria. I adjust the water temperature to warm, because too hot or too cold water can cause chapping and cracking, which subsequently leading to providing an entry point for pathogens. Warm water removes less of the protective oils on the hands, thus reducing the chance of chapping and cracking. When I wash my hands first and then apply liquid antibacterial soap. I keep the hands and forearms lower than the elbows at all times, by being cautious not to touch the inside of the sink, which is also considered to be contaminated. By keeping
I explain the procedure and usher him to a restroom at which he would collect his urine sample. When the patient is ready to turn in the sample, I handle his urine sample by applying standard precaution as follows; I sanitize hands by washing with soap and warm water or using alcohol hand sanitizer. I select the correct size gloves to fit snugly but not too tight in my hands, as a fit that is too tight can cause the glove to tear and too loose can make it difficult to perform tasks effectively. After wearing the gloves, I inspect them for tears, holes, or punctures. If I find a defect in a glove, I must remove, discard, and replace it, because the defective glove has not yet come in contact with potentially biohazardous material. If no defect is find with gloves worn, I perform my task. After I place the patient’s urine in the designated area, I remove gloves carefully to prevent contamination of my hands by the possible pathogens on the outside of the