Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococcus (VRE) (Nursing)

00:01 Okay, again, as we're looking at this slide, it's beautiful and the color is purple.

00:08 So, pause for just a minute and see if you can remember what type of organism this is. Is it gram-positive or gram-negative, just based on the color? Okay, that beautiful purple color is brought to you by a gram-positive organism.

00:29 This is vancomycin-resistant enterococcus.

00:33 Okay. Now, this is some bacteria that normally live in my intestines, in the female genital tract.

00:40 Hello, didn't see that one coming, did you? But it can also cause infections in your brain, in your heart valves, in your urinary tract, in open wounds, or even your bloodstream.

00:51 Remember, once an infection is in your bloodstream, wow, we're really at risk for sepsis.

00:57 The problem with sepsis is it leads to organ failure, septic shock, and death.

01:02 So, I know I always sound like, "Wow, you are Debbie Downer," but we just always want you to keep in mind, what is the worst case possible scenario, so, as a nurse, you'll recognize any symptoms as you move toward that in any way, shape, or form, so we can intervene and stop that process.

01:20 So VRE, vancomycin-resistant enterococcus -- Let's have some fun. Let's see what you already know.

01:27 What does the word "resistant" tell us? Yeah, it tells us that this used to be -- this bug used to be killed by an antibiotic, and now it's not.

01:37 Now, from the name, which antibiotic did this bug used to be killed by? Right. Vancomycin.

01:44 That's what we call it vancomycin-resistant.

01:47 Okay, by the way, what is this bug? Right there in the name -- enterococcus.

01:52 So we know that enterococcus used to be killed by vancomycin, but now it's resistant.

01:58 And when it comes to antibiotics and drugs and bugs, we want to make sure that whatever our bug is, it is not resistant to a medication that we're using to treat it.

02:09 You're always looking for the word "sensitive" on those culture and sensitivity reports.

02:14 So you want to make sure that your bug name and your drug name, we've got the right drug for the right bug, and we know that it's sensitive to that medication.

02:24 So we know this is -- Remember, this is a bug that lives in our body.

02:27 Some usually in our intestines, in our female genital tract, but it can cause problems in lots of different areas, and it's spread, like the others we've talked about, by contact.

02:38 Okay, so what's different about this drug? I'll hit it, but you're seeing a really common theme here.

02:45 We have the chance, as nurses and healthcare providers, to stop the spread of infection, but it really depends on us; how we wash our hands, how we wash our stethoscopes, how we sanitize things, how we care for our patients.

02:59 How careful we are with the things that we hold and we contact our patients with.

03:04 So, remember, you play a phenomenally large role in stopping, not just in how we give antibiotics, but stopping the spread of bugs in the hospital setting.

03:15 So, we can't really use vancomycin to treat this, so what do we use? Well, you use a culture and sensitivity test, just like we did on the others.

03:24 So you're going to use an antibiotic that it is susceptible to. We're going to base it on some treatment protocols.

03:30 So I've listed the drug names for you there.

03:33 Now, what I want you to do is I'd like you to star the drugs that you've already watched the videos for, and jot yourself some quick notes.

03:45 What do you remember about those? And you know the drill.

03:53 Underline the ones that you have not watched the videos for yet, and write yourself a note to follow up after this video.

04:04 Look up what family or category they're in, and make sure you watch those videos.

04:09 That way, you have a better understanding. You've got more stuff to connect it to.

04:12 It will make a happy brain and 1 that can remember those things when you take an exam or when you treat your patients.