Standard Precautions

standard precautions,

guidelines recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for reducing the risk of transmission of blood-borne and other pathogens in hospitals. The standard precautions synthesize the major features of universal precautions (designed to reduce the risk of transmission of bloodborne pathogens) and body substance isolation (designed to reduce the risk of pathogens from moist body substances) and apply them to all patients receiving care in hospitals regardless of their diagnosis or presumed infection status. Standard precautions apply to (1) blood; (2) all body fluids, secretions, and excretions except sweat, regardless of whether or not they contain blood; (3) nonintact skin; and (4) mucous membranes. The precautions are designed to reduce the risk of transmission of microorganisms from both recognized and unrecognized sources of infection in hospitals. See also transmission-based precautions. Compare Universal Precautions.

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Universal Precautions

A method of infection control—recommended by the CDC—in which all human blood, certain body fluids, as well as fresh tissues and cells of human origin are handled as if they are known to be infected with HIV, HBV, and/or other blood-borne pathogens

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standard,

n that which is established by authority, custom, or general acceptance as a model; criterion.

standard deviation (SD),

n a computed measure of the dispersion or variability of a distribution of scores around a given point or line. It measures the way an individual score deviates from the most representative score (mean). A small SD indicates little individual deviation or a homogeneous group, and a large SD indicates much individual deviation or a heterogeneous group.

standard error,

n a measure or estimate of the sampling errors affecting a statistic; a measure of the amount the statistic may be expected to differ by chance from the true value of the statistic.

standard error of estimate,

n the standard deviation of the differences between the actual values of the dependent variables (results) and the predicted values. This statistic is associated with regression analysis.

standard error of the mean,

n an estimate of the amount that an obtained mean may be expected to differ by chance from the true mean.

standard of care,

n a written statement describing the rules, actions, and conditions that direct patient care. Standards of care guide practice and may be used to evaluate performance. Also referred to during the practice of dentistry when discussing quality of care.

standard operating procedure (SOP),

n a method of functioning that has been established over time in order to execute a specific task or react to a specific set of circumstances.

standard orders,

n.pl the rules, policies, procedures, regulations, and orders for the conduct of patient care in various stipulated clinical situations.

standard precautions,

n a set of procedures designed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to prevent the spread of known and unknown sources of infections. It formerly was called
universal precautions and applies to blood; body fluids, excretions, and secretions of the skin; and oral mucosa.

standard score,

n a derived score indicating the degree of deviation of an individual score from the mean using the standard deviation as the unit of measure.