What are standard precautions?

Standard precautions are infection control practices that are designed to be applied universally to all patients, regardless of their known or suspected infection status. This approach ensures that healthcare workers take appropriate measures to protect themselves and others from the risk of transmission of infectious agents.

By adopting standard precautions, healthcare providers engage in basic practices such as hand hygiene, the use of personal protective equipment (PPE), safe injection practices, and proper handling of potentially contaminated surfaces and materials. This comprehensive application of infection control measures helps to minimize the risk of spreading infections within healthcare settings, ultimately safeguarding patients, staff, and visitors.

Other options, while important aspects of infection control, do not encompass the broader scope of standard precautions. Special measures for high-risk patients, for example, focus on specific groups rather than a universal approach. Guidelines for cleaning surgical instruments and protocols for handling waste materials pertain to particular procedures or situations rather than a systematic set of practices that apply to all interactions in healthcare.