Infection Control in Audiological Practice
Description
The scope of practice in audiology has changed significantly over the last 20 years, and infection control has become an important issue. In the delivery of any health related service, it is the health professional’s responsibility to ensure the safety of all patients served. Toward this end, it is imperative that audiologists provide patients with diagnostic and treatment environments that are designed to minimize or eliminate the potential transmission of disease. Audiologists must be diligent in their efforts for controlling the spread of infectious disease within the context of the entire clinical setting.
Key Points
Potentially harmful organisms can be passed from person to person through direct contact or by indirect contact, that is, by touching contaminated objects or surfaces. In order to reduce the risk of cross contamination, audiologists must follow protocols for decontaminating sources of contamination. This decontamination takes the form of cleaning, disinfecting, and sterilizing.
It is every audiologist’s responsibility to ensure that infection control protocols are established for their work setting and that the guidelines recommended within such protocols are adhered to routinely.
Get Involved
Whether serving on a clinical document development panel or participating as peer reviewers, volunteers have regular chances to deepen their engagement with the Academy and make important contributions benefiting the field of audiology. If you are interested in clinical document development, please volunteer to express interest and submit a CV to the Academy’s guidelines staff by email.
To view the list of guidelines and strategic documents in development and to learn more about the Academy’s clinical document development process, visit the Academy’s Practice Resources website. Information from interested members is accepted on an ongoing basis, and members will be contacted as clinical document volunteer openings occur.
