your stethoscope first. Remember, we talked about that. The guilty
party might be defensive, but he or she is a lot more likely to remem-
ber next time.
Hand hygiene bundle
Admittedly, we can be overwhelmed by the constant myriad demands
associated with preventing infections. Potential pathogens, it would
seem, are everywhere. It may help if, instead of looking at all these
interventions as individual acts, we think of the stethoscope as part of
the hand hygiene bundle: It's one of the things, along with my hands,
that touched my patient, and that's something I need to address
before going to my next patient.
In health care, as we all know, we can become very automated. And
the more automated we get, the less mindful we are. We need to pur-
sue medical mindfulness, to say, I'm going to see the next patient, am
I taking anything into this room that could potentially contaminate
that patient or cause harm?
Three important questions
It's really very easy to low-level disinfect a stethoscope. As the study
points out, it can be done with either alcohol wipes or hand sanitizer.
The diaphragm is clearly the most important part, but it takes just a
few seconds to wipe the stem and tubing, as well. Typically, the scope
will dry before you reach the next patient. It's just something you
have to get into the habit of doing. Like wearing seat belts. Eventually
it becomes second nature.
We all know that the bugs associated with healthcare-associated
infections are getting increasingly determined and resilient. When it
comes to actions that help us fight back, there are 3 simple questions
Infection Prevention
IP
2 4 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y M A G A Z I N E • S E P T E M B E R 2 0 1 7
