CBIC CIC flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Incubation period of varicella

Typically 10 to 21 days (average 14 to 16) from exposure to rash onset. Patients are infectious 1 to 2 days before rash appears until all lesions have crusted.

Chain of infection links

Six sequential links: infectious agent, reservoir, portal of exit, mode of transmission, portal of entry, and susceptible host. Interrupting any single link prevents transmission.

Colonization versus infection

Colonization is organism presence and multiplication without tissue invasion or immune response; infection is tissue invasion producing clinical signs and symptoms.

Fourfold rise in IgG titer

Serologic evidence of recent infection: a fourfold or greater increase in pathogen-specific IgG between acute and convalescent sera collected roughly two to four weeks apart.

Prion resistance to sterilization

Prions lack nucleic acid and resist routine disinfection and standard steam sterilization. Instruments contaminated with CJD tissue require special protocols such as sodium hydroxide, prolonged steam cycles, or incineration.

Incidence rate formula

New cases occurring in a defined period divided by the population at risk, multiplied by a constant. It estimates the probability of developing the disease.

Attack rate formula

Number of cases divided by number of persons exposed, multiplied by 100. It is used during outbreaks to compare illness risk between exposed and unexposed groups.

Standardized infection ratio

Observed number of healthcare-associated infections divided by the NHSN risk-adjusted predicted number. A value below 1.0 means fewer infections occurred than predicted.

Endemic versus epidemic

Endemic describes the usual constant or seasonal baseline of disease in a population; epidemic describes occurrence clearly above that baseline in a defined time and place.

Case definition components

Standardized criteria of person, place, and time plus clinical and laboratory findings. Cases are then classified as confirmed, probable, or suspected.

Odds ratio formula

In a 2x2 table for case-control studies, the odds ratio equals (a times d) divided by (b times c). It approximates relative risk when the disease is rare.

Airborne precautions requirements

N95 or higher respirator plus a negative-pressure airborne infection isolation room with 6 to 12 air changes per hour and the door closed; used for tuberculosis, measles, varicella, and smallpox.

Droplet precautions organisms

Influenza, pertussis, mumps, rubella, meningococcal disease, and diphtheria. They require a surgical mask and spatial separation of about three to six feet.

When to use soap and water

Use instead of alcohol-based rub when hands are visibly soiled and after care of patients with Clostridioides difficile or norovirus, because alcohol does not reliably kill spores.

Doffing PPE order

Remove gloves first, then eye protection, then gown, and the mask or respirator last, ideally leaving the room before removing the respirator; perform hand hygiene afterward.

Contact precautions organisms

MRSA, VRE, C. difficile, carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae, scabies, norovirus, and RSV. They require gown and gloves at room entry and dedicated equipment.

Standard precautions definition

Infection control practices applied to every patient regardless of diagnosis: hand hygiene, risk-based PPE, safe injection practices, sharps disposal, and respiratory hygiene with cough etiquette.

HIV needlestick transmission risk

About 0.3 percent per percutaneous exposure to HIV-infected blood. Risk rises with deep injury, visible blood on the device, and a hollow-bore needle placed in a vein.

HIV postexposure prophylaxis timing

Begin antiretroviral prophylaxis as soon as possible, ideally within two hours and no later than 72 hours after exposure, and continue the regimen for 28 days.

Hepatitis B postexposure prophylaxis

For an unvaccinated exposed worker, give hepatitis B immune globulin and start the vaccine series. Needlestick transmission risk from HBsAg-positive blood can reach 30 percent.

Annual N95 fit testing

Required at least yearly and whenever the respirator model changes. A user seal check must also be performed every time the respirator is donned.

Annual infection prevention risk assessment

Evaluates patient populations, services, procedures, geography, and prior surveillance data to prioritize program goals, surveillance targets, and resource allocation for the coming year.

PDSA improvement cycle

Plan-Do-Study-Act is a rapid-cycle test of change. Small tests are measured and then scaled up to full implementation using outcome data.

FMEA purpose

Failure Mode and Effects Analysis prospectively identifies ways a process can fail, ranks each failure by severity, likelihood, and detectability, then targets the highest-risk steps for redesign.

HAIs reported to CMS

Through NHSN: central line-associated bloodstream infections, catheter-associated urinary tract infections, selected surgical site infections, MRSA bacteremia, and C. difficile laboratory-identified events.

Levels of evidence hierarchy

Systematic reviews and meta-analyses of randomized trials rank highest, followed by randomized trials, cohort studies, case-control studies, cross-sectional studies, case series, and expert opinion lowest.

Reliability versus validity

Reliability is the consistency and repeatability of a measurement; validity is whether the tool actually measures the concept it is intended to measure.

Psychomotor learning domain

Skill-based learning acquired through practice and demonstrated by return demonstration. Competency is validated by direct observation against a standardized checklist.

Spaulding classification

Critical items enter sterile tissue or vasculature and require sterilization; semicritical items contact mucous membranes and need high-level disinfection; noncritical items touch intact skin and need low-level disinfection.

Steam sterilization biological indicator

Geobacillus stearothermophilus spores are used to monitor steam cycles, while Bacillus atrophaeus spores serve as the biological indicator for ethylene oxide sterilization.

Bleach for blood spills

A 1:10 dilution of 5.25 percent household bleach, about 5000 ppm available chlorine, is used for blood and body fluid spills with the labeled contact time.

ICRA during construction

The Infection Control Risk Assessment matrix combines construction activity type with patient risk level to determine barrier requirements, HEPA filtration, and negative-pressure exhaust.