Published Paper Details:

The aim of this study was to assess the level of skill regarding prevention of central line associated blood stream infection among staff nurses in selected hospital Kashmir. Central venous catheters are among the most frequently used medical devices in critically ill patients. Unfortunately, complications are not uncommon despite the many improvements in caregiver behavior observed over recent decades. Central line-associated bloodstream infection is probably the most feared complication. It is defined as a primary laboratory-confirmed bloodstream infection in a patient with a central line at the time of, or within 24-h prior to, the onset of symptoms, in cases where the cultured organism is not related to an infection from another site. The central line should be in place for >?2 calendar days on the date of the event, with the day of device placement being day 1. Tens of thousands of patients continue to experience CLABSIs each year in the US, resulting in thousands of deaths each year and billions of dollars in added costs to the US healthcare system. Healthcare providers must follow a strict protocol when inserting the line to make sure the line remains sterile and a CLABSI does not occur. In addition to inserting the central line properly, health care providers must use stringent infection control practices and each time they should check the line or change the dressing. So medical personals can play vital role in safe guarding the patients from developing the infection while doing any procedure or treatment. There are different types of hospital acquired infections but central line associated blood stream infection is most common. Globally 250000 blood stream infections occur annually and most are related to the presence of intravascular devices. In united sates the central line associated blood stream infection rate in intensive care unit is estimated 0.8 per 1000 central line days. On this basis a pre-experimental study was conducted to assess the level of skill regarding prevention of central line associated blood stream infection among staff nurses in selected hospital Kashmir. Thirty study subjects were selected by non-probability purposive sampling technique. Self-structured questionnaire was used to assess the level of skill. Data was analyzed by using descriptive and inferential statistics. The findings revealed that mean pretest 12.56 among staff nurses was poor with SD 2.41 and t-test 3.98.The study recommended that planned teaching program, awareness programmes, demonstrations and trainings should be imparted to increase the level of skill among health professionals.