Healthcare as Standard Procedure Warranted in This

Healthcare As standard procedure warranted in this case, her obstetrician injected her with varicella zoster specific immunoglobulin. The injection did occur too late, but this is a special case warranting attention and was a prophylactic to protect the baby. A few days later the RN developed chickenpox anyway. The reasons why the vaccine did not take could have been the fact that the RN had already been exposed, and the situation is referred to as "breakthrough varicella," (National Centre for Immunisation, 2009, p. 3).

Breakthrough varicella is a mild form of the infection, and yet is still contagious. Varicella vaccine should not be given to the baby until it is twelve months of age, but it may not be necessary at all due to the potential in vitro exposure to the varicella zoster virus. Infants "should receive no specific treatment or vaccination after exposure to Varicella zoster virus (VZV) but can later receive acyclovir (Immunization Action Coalition, 2014). b.

According to the Immunization Action Coalition (2014), "There has been only one published report of mother to child transmission of varicella vaccine virus." Moreover, "if the mother is at high risk of exposure to varicella, the benefits of vaccination probably outweigh the risk of transmission to the infant," (Immunization Action Coalition, 2014). If the mother gets chickenpox during the first half of her pregnancy, then there is a small chance the baby will have some serious effects including scarring and birth defects (Children, Youth, and Women's Health Service, n.d.).

The risk is much higher when the woman gets chickenpox closer to the delivery date, which is why the vaccine may be given in these cases. c. Six infection control issues this case raises include the need to monitor all health care staff for their exposure to specific infectious or contagious disease. In this case, the nurse should have reported her chicken pox exposure earlier and had been vaccinated. Second, chickenpox cannot be prevented solely by hand washing, so this is not an issue in this case.

Third, cleaning is also not going to be effective but only nurses with proven immunity should deal with the potentially or actually infected patients. Fourth, the post important issue is exposure and awareness. Fifth, all pregnant nurses and health care workers should be required to report their status. Finally, negative airflow rooms and isolation may be warranted (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2014). Part B a. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is resistant to many antibiotics.

It can "cause severe problems such as bloodstream infections, pneumonia and surgical site infections" (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2014). Therefore, treatment of the wounds must be thorough and immediate. When the person is infected, wounds must therefore be covered fully and the bandages kept clean and dry until the wound has been healed fully. Drainage must be done professionally. Frequent hand washing is a must for the infected and all surrounding employees.

The person should not share their personal items that may have come into contact with the pus from wounds, like towels or sheets, during this time. b. Treatment options for a patient with MRSA or similar infections include having the health care professionals treat and drain the wound using proper procedures. In some cases, the health care worker may need the physician to prescribe antibiotics for the infection, but the infection may not respond to the treatment (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2014).

Keeping the patient relatively isolated, making sure the patient's sheets and towels are dealt with properly, and ensuring the patient does not touch loved ones with open wounds will help, as well as frequent wound care. It is important to coach patients regularly about their wound care. c. The signs and symptoms of MRSA vary from mild to severe.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2014), patients may first believe that they only have a spider bite but "unless a spider is actually seen, the irritation is likely not a spider bite." Therefore, health care workers should remain vigilant for the signs and symptoms of MRSA to prevent its spreading. The bump or infected area may appear red and swollen, and is often painful or sore to the touch. The skin may also feel warm. When the infection fills with pus, it is becoming more severe.

Likewise, the development of fever shows that there is an infection. In the most extreme cases, the MRSA infection can lead to "can cause severe problems such as bloodstream infections, pneumonia and surgical site infections" in patients with compromised immune systems (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2014). Part C a. In the study of epidemiology, incidence refers to the number of instances of the illness (or death, or whatever is being measured) during a specific time period and within a particular population (Shields & Twycross, 2003, p. 50).

Thus, incidence rates refer specifically to contextual variables like time, place, and demographics. Incidence rates refers to the rates at which the incidents occur, but incidence and incident rates are similar. Incidence proportion and density are related concepts, and both fall under the rubric of disease occurrence (Shields & Twycross, 2003). Prevalence refers to a "factor at a specific point in time," (Shields & Tycross, 2003, p. 50).

Under most circumstances, prevalence is equal to incidence times disease duration, which "provides a good way to indicate the burden of disease in a population," ("Descriptive Epidemiology," 2014). b. Endemic refers to the state of being indigenous to a region. Thus, "when a disease is present in a population or geographic region at consistent levels and periods of time," it is endemic (Cheprasov, 2014). Malaria is a perfect example of an endemic disease.

It is caused by several types of pathogens from the family Plasmodium, which can thrive in certain tropical areas ("Malaria," n.d.). The term epidemic refers to the way the disease spreads. If a disease spreads faster than was predicted, or faster than normal, it may be referred to as an epidemic. According to Cheprasov (2014), "when an outbreak of disease affects a disproportionately higher.