Medical Assistant Prep / Unit 7 MAS 152 worked example, 60 to 90 seconds
The Chain of Infection
The idea
An infection spreads through a chain of six links, and breaking any one link stops the spread.
In practice
The first link is the infectious agent, such as a bacterium, virus, fungus or parasite. The second is the reservoir, the place where it grows, such as blood or a wound. The third is the portal of exit, the way it leaves, such as respiratory secretions, blood, urine or feces. The fourth is the mode of transmission, the way it travels, such as touch, a cough or a needle. The fifth is the portal of entry, the way it gets into the next person, such as a mucous membrane or broken skin. The sixth is the susceptible host, the person whose defenses cannot fight it off.
Where people slip
You will rarely see the germ itself. What you control is the transmission and the portals, so most of your daily habits target those links.
Your place on the trail
Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.
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