How to Avoid Clostridium Infections

Clostridium difficile is a type of bacteria that can cause diarrhea and sometimes severe colitis. Clostridium difficile infections are most common in elderly people taking antibiotics while staying at a hospital or long-term care facility, and the infections are easily spread. If you are a regular visitor to a health care facility or an employee, or if you are caring for an infected person at home, you can avoid a Clostridium infection and prevent spreading it by taking certain precautions.

Things You'll Need

• Soap
• Warm water
• Detergent
• Chlorine bleach
• Disposable gloves and cover-ups
• Hot water

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Instructions

Visiting Health Care Facilities

• 1

  Wash your hands regularly with soap and warm water, especially before and after contact with patients. This is the most important measure for avoiding Clostridium infections.

• 2

  Avoid touching surfaces in health care facilities as much as possible to avoid a Clostridium infection, particularly in bathrooms. Clostridium bacteria can survive for many hours on and around toilets, on counter tops and sinks, and anywhere an infected person has touched without washing his hands after going to the bathroom.

• 3

  Avoid putting your fingers in your mouth. Unless you are certain your hands are clean, don't eat, especially using your fingers, and avoid touching your nose or eyes, because mucus membranes can absorb germs.

Caring for Patients

• 4

  Wash your hands regularly with soap and warm water, especially before and after contact with patients. As with people visiting patients, this is the most important prevention method.

• 5

  Make sure bathrooms are cleaned thoroughly if you work in a health care facility or if you live with an infected person. Use detergent, and then disinfect the bathrooms with chlorine bleach or another disinfectant.

• 6

  Segregate an infected patient in a single room away from other people.

• 7

  Avoid sharing personal hygiene items with an infected person, which can easily be a matter of habit if you live with this individual. These items include towels and washcloths, hair brushes and combs, and toothbrushes. Don't share drinking glasses or eating utensils.

• 8

  Wear disposable gloves and a disposable apron, smock, or scrubs when caring for patients infected with Clostridium.

• 9

  Wash the patient's bedding in hot water with detergent and chlorine bleach.