Which measure is appropriate for the nurse to take to prevent the spread of infection while caring for a patient with an infection?

Using proper hand hygiene is a fundamental practice in infection control and is one of the most effective ways to prevent the spread of infection, especially in a healthcare setting. Hand hygiene includes washing hands with soap and water or using an alcohol-based hand sanitizer to remove pathogens that can be transferred from one surface to another or from one patient to another.

This practice protects both healthcare workers and patients from infections by significantly reducing the microbial load on hands, which are the most common vehicle for the transmission of infectious agents. In the context of caring for a patient with an infection, maintaining diligent hand hygiene before and after contact with the patient or any equipment and surfaces will help minimize the risk of cross-contamination and further spread of infection.

Other measures, while potentially beneficial in certain contexts, do not directly address the primary mode of infection transmission as effectively as hand hygiene does. Limiting patient mobility may be appropriate in some circumstances, but it does not prevent the spread of infection directly. Not using personal protective equipment can lead to exposure to infectious agents, and ensuring that a patient does not share rooms can be beneficial as part of an isolation protocol, but without proper hand hygiene, those measures alone are insufficient to effectively control the spread of infection.