Associate Professor, Department of Community Medicine, Government Medical College, Kollam, Kerala, India.
Assistant Professor, Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Government Medical College, Kollam, Kerala, India.
Indian J Public Health. 2023 Oct 1;67(4):606-611. doi: 10.4103/ijph.ijph_912_22. Epub 2023 Dec 29.
National Strategic Plan to End tuberculosis (TB) in India 2020-2025 aims to prevent the emergence of TB in susceptible populations. Airborne infection control (AIC) practices in high-risk settings like homes for the aged (HFA) will be essential to achieve this.
The objective is to assess the AIC practices (AICPs) in HFA in the Kollam district in Kerala, India.
A mixed method approach was used. the study was done in five HFA s in a southern district of Kerala to find AICPs. Using purposive sampling, in-depth interviews was conducted among inmates with recent respiratory infection and administrators. Environmental measures were assessed using an observation checklist.
Ventilation was inadequate in 25%-40% of HFA. Air change per hour and distance between beds were less. Very few inmates were aware of the need for proper ventilation and personal hygiene. Wearing masks and hand hygiene was not practiced. Administrators faced shortages of space, funds, and human resources for caring for hospitalized inmates, and psychiatric and terminally ill patients.
There is a need to train the staff and inmates on AIC. Infrastructural improvements, like the use of partition screens in the short term and the creation of model airborne infection control HFA in the long run, with a collaborative effort from health professionals and architects, are needed for TB elimination efforts to succeed.
印度 2020-2025 年国家结核病战略计划旨在预防易感人群中结核病的发生。在老年人之家等高危环境中实施空气传播感染控制（AIC）措施对于实现这一目标至关重要。
评估印度喀拉拉邦科拉姆区老年人之家（HFA）中的 AIC 实践（AICPs）。
采用混合方法。在喀拉拉邦南部的五个 HFA 中进行了这项研究，以寻找 AICPs。使用目的抽样法，对最近患有呼吸道感染的住院患者和管理人员进行了深入访谈。使用观察检查表评估环境措施。
25%-40%的 HFA 通风不足。空气交换率和床位之间的距离较小。很少有住院患者意识到适当通风和个人卫生的必要性。佩戴口罩和手部卫生没有得到实施。管理人员在照顾住院患者、精神病患者和绝症患者方面面临空间、资金和人力资源短缺的问题。
需要对工作人员和住院患者进行 AIC 培训。需要进行基础设施改进，例如在短期内使用分区屏风，并从卫生专业人员和建筑师合作的角度出发，长期创建模型空气传播感染控制 HFA，以成功进行结核病消除工作。
