Literature Review and Resources
Surgical site infections (SSI) are the typical type of infections that occur in a wound caused by invasive surgical process. This type of infections is the prevalent causes of healthcare-associated infections. Most patients who undergo a surgical procedure always fall victim of surgical site infections. In minor cases, these infections do occur after the patient is discharged from hospital. It is of great significance to note that, surgical site infections can range from a normal trivial wound discharge without any apparent complication to an adversely complicated condition. This type of infection is related to morbidity, a considerable statistic of postoperative deaths is related to surgical site infection. There is a scope of clinical complication that is related to the surgical site such as poor scars. These scars are, usually, unacceptable cosmetically, for example, hypertrophic, restriction of movement, persistent pain and a notable impact on emotional stability of an individual. Surgical site infection victims can double the length of time that the victim stays in the hospital, thus increasing the cost of provision of healthcare. An additional cost that is incurred by the victims of this infection is attributed to the severity of the infection and initial type of surgery. These costs are inclusive of the following factors; extra nursing care, re-operation, litigation and reduced quality of life.
Therefore, this study aims at developing appropriate decision-making procedures for clinicians and patients for the best treatment for this condition. The study simply aims at developing a prevention and treatment plan for surgical site conditions. This study simply outlines the patient’s journey in respect to preoperative, intra-operative and postoperative phases of the surgical process. The following are the three main problems that are related to surgical site infection;
- Extra nursing care; surgical site infections involves comprehensive attention from the nurses. These include plenty of both the internal and external costs in attending to this complication.
- Re-operation; this is a procedure that is undertaken soon after the earlier treatment plan backfires. Therefore, the victim has to undergo this procedure in order to work out a qualitative treatment plan for the infection.
- Reduced quality of life; infections on a surgical reduce the morale and quality of life. This is due to the hectic process that the victim has to undergo.
Literature Search
The following are some of the keywords that will be used for this study, sample, statistical power, risk ratio, systematic review, screening, selection criteria and wound dehiscence (Bjerknes et al. 2014). All these words are key throughout reviewing the problem related to surgical site infection. The sample mainly deals with a representative number of the total victims who have fallen victim of the surgical site infection. The risk ratio is mainly the number of persons that are prone to the after effects of surgical site infection. Systematic review deals with the past studies that have been done in respect to this scope. Selection criteria focus on the number of victims that have been subjected to the effects of this problem. While wound dehiscence is the dormancy of the wound to heal after it has been exposed to this problem.
Sources for the literature search can be sourced from different portals, the two main sources that this paper will focus on is the past research papers that have been done by different authors and concept papers that have been written by scholars. The research cab be said to have been successful due to the extent at which it was handled and established. The cross-study did consider at evaluating the available secondary data on the number of patients that have been subjected to this condition. Past research show that, patient skin contain resident and transient microorganisms present on their skin. It is of great significance to ensure that the skin is free from any microbial flora prior to the prescribed surgery. Preoperative bathing or showering with designated antiseptics is necessary for the prevention of surgical site infection. Use of chlorhexidine as a cleansing agent serves almost the same purpose as an antiseptic soap, nut the later is more cost-effective than the former. Antibiotic prophylaxis is an agent that has been used widely to prevent surgical site infection, mainly for surgical processes that proofs to be of greater risk. This antibiotic is different from the main treatment as it includes a single dosage that is administered before the surgery. Use of this antibiotic is directly related to the acute reduction of surgical site infection.
Statistical power yielded qualitative results in determining the right type of sample that was to be studied and analyzed in order to find out this problem related to surgical site condition. Systematic review was also efficient in determining the right type of past researchers that could have been incorporated into this study. It is therefore of great significance to note and understand the underlying basics related to surgical site conditions. To sustain a patient from contracting surgical site condition, the following data procedures should be adhered to;
- The patient’s haemoglobin saturation level should be maintained at above 95%, or significantly at a higher percentage than this if there is a possibility of respiratory insufficiency with the victim (Rajkumari et al. 2014). Research shows that, most tissues within the human body heal significantly if the optimal conditions for perfusion, oxygenation and body temperature are ensured (Wang et al. 2014). It is of great essence for the operating team to ensure that the patient’s homeostasis is maintained appropriately during surgical procedures. Past studies however show that there is a discrepancy when it comes to the practicability of this theorem in administering preoperative oxygenation.
- Another data set that is of great significance to watch is to ensure that a 2% of chlorhexidine gluconate in approximately 70% isopropyl alcohol solution is applied in skin preparation for this surgical process. The patient skin is always eluded to be the real course of invading pathogens when undertaking surgical skin infection. In order to decrease postoperative infections, optimization of preoperative skin antisepsis is always checked upon. Despite the cheap removal of transient microorganisms by soap and water, antiseptics are efficient for removing the resident flora just before the surgery. Antiseptics such as povidone-iodine and chlorhexidine are always applied to this course.
- In order to establish whether 2% chlorhexidine gluconate should be mixed in 70% isopropyl alcohol for skin preparation should be applied for single or multi-use. One appropriate systematic review on this subject established that use of chlorhexidine in combination with iodine for preoperative purposes to ensure that they prevent skin surgical infection. This approach was cost effective than the use of 2% chlorhexidine which is comparatively expensive in reducing skin surgical infection. In a research done in 2009, preoperative skin antiseptics used for reducing and preventing skin surgical infection, notes that the antiseptic bottle can easily be contaminated (Saunders et al. 2014).
Data Evaluation
Annotated Bibliography and CARS Checklist
