Infection Control and Isolation Precautions
Which precautions go with which infections, what to wear, and the order to put it on and take it off.
Based on the CDC's 2007 Guideline for Isolation Precautions, which is still the national guideline. An update was in progress when CDC's infection control advisory committee was dissolved in 2025. Always follow your facility's current policy.
Standard precautions: for every client
- Hand hygiene before and after client contact, and after removing gloves
- Gloves for contact with blood, body fluids, mucous membranes, or broken skin
- Gown, mask, and eye protection when splashes or sprays are likely
- Respiratory hygiene: cover coughs and offer a mask to clients who are coughing
- Safe injection practices and safe handling of sharps
Transmission-based precautions
These are added on top of standard precautions.
| Precaution | Examples | Room | What you wear |
|---|---|---|---|
| Contact | MRSA, VRE, C. difficile, norovirus, scabies, RSV, wound infections with heavy drainage | Private room, or with a client who has the same infection. Dedicated equipment such as a stethoscope. | Gown and gloves on entering the room |
| Droplet | Influenza, pertussis, Neisseria meningitidis (meningococcal disease), mumps, rubella, Mycoplasma pneumonia | Private room, or at least 3 feet of separation with a curtain drawn | Mask on entering the room. Client wears a mask when leaving the room. |
| Airborne | Tuberculosis (pulmonary or laryngeal), measles, chickenpox (varicella), disseminated shingles | Airborne infection isolation room (negative pressure), door kept closed | Fit-tested N95 or higher respirator. Client wears a surgical mask when leaving the room. |
High-yield details
- Chickenpox and disseminated shingles need airborne plus contact precautions.
- C. difficile and norovirus: wash with soap and water. Alcohol hand rub doesn't reliably kill C. difficile spores. Clean surfaces with a product that kills spores, such as a bleach-based disinfectant, per policy.
- Clients with suspected tuberculosis stay in airborne precautions until infectious TB is ruled out, following facility criteria.
- Keep transport to a minimum. When a client must leave the room, alert the receiving department.
Putting on and taking off PPE
Putting on (donning)
- Hand hygiene
- Gown
- Mask or respirator
- Goggles or face shield
- Gloves (over the gown cuffs)
Taking off (doffing)
- Gloves
- Goggles or face shield
- Gown
- Mask or respirator (after leaving the room for an N95)
- Hand hygiene
This is one of the sequences the CDC shows. CDC also shows a method that removes the gown and gloves together. The key is to remove the most contaminated items first, avoid touching the front of anything, and do hand hygiene right away if your hands become contaminated.
Hand hygiene
| Use | When |
|---|---|
| Alcohol-based hand rub | The preferred method for most routine care when hands aren't visibly dirty |
| Soap and water | When hands are visibly dirty or soiled with blood or body fluids, after caring for a client with C. difficile or norovirus, and before eating or after using the restroom |
Protective environment
For clients whose immune systems are severely weakened, such as after an allogeneic stem cell transplant: a positive-pressure room with HEPA-filtered air, and no fresh flowers or potted plants. Many facilities add their own neutropenic precautions; follow your policy.
Sources
- Siegel JD, Rhinehart E, Jackson M, Chiarello L; HICPAC. 2007 Guideline for Isolation Precautions: Preventing Transmission of Infectious Agents in Healthcare Settings (CDC).
- CDC. Sequence for Putting On and Removing Personal Protective Equipment.
- CDC. Hand Hygiene in Healthcare Settings: clinical guidance.
- CDC. Clostridioides difficile: infection prevention for healthcare providers.
For exam study only. In clinical practice, follow your facility's policies, the prescriber's orders, and current references. Free to print and share for personal and classroom study; not for resale. NCLEX® is a registered trademark of NCSBN, which does not endorse NCLEXSim.
More free study guides
What AI is good for, where it goes wrong, what never to paste into a chatbot, and a 4-step check for anything it tells you.
One printable page: the 4-step check, the source ladder, red flags, and what never to paste into AI.
Typical adult ranges for electrolytes, CBC, coagulation, ABGs, kidney function, glucose, and drug levels.
The 8 client needs categories with their percentages, the 6 clinical judgment steps, how the exam ends, and the Next Generation item types.
The 'who first' ladder, the five rights of delegation from the 2019 national guidelines, and who can do what on the care team.
Every conversion and formula you need for med math, with a worked example for each and the rounding rules.
Practice the way the NCLEX tests you
1,059 fact-checked questions, a full adaptive exam that stops by the real rules, a proctored test-day mode with an integrity report, 8 NGN case studies, bedside simulations, and ACLS megacodes. Free. Already paying for a question bank? Keep it, and rehearse test day here.