Download Bacterial Comparisons Of Used and Unused Medication Vials

Bacterial Comparisons Of
Used and Unused
Medication Vials
Whitney Baker
Undergraduate Student
(Biology-Health Science Concentration)
Biology Department
Tennessee Tech University
Cookeville, TN 38501
Project Summary
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Problem-Pharmacy Employees encounter many
types of bacteria.
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Objective- To determine how many types of
bacteria a used medication vial might harbor.
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Hypothesis- Used medication vials, that pharmacy
employees touch, harbor more bacteria than
unused vial originally released to the customers.
Null Hypothesis- Used and unused medication vials
contain the same amount of bacteria.
Project Summary Cont.
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Goal-To determine the specific number of
different types of bacteria present on a used
vial.
Goal Accomplishment- I plan to swab vials
and use TSA plates to determine bacterial
growth colony counts.
Expected Results- I expect that used vials
will have a great number of bacteria than
unused vial, and therefore a greater colony
count.
Introduction
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Problem-Pharmacy Employees encounter
many types of bacteria.
Literature Review –
– Karchmer, T.B., A.M. Anglim, L.J. Durbin, B.M.
Farr. 2001. Pseudoepidemic of streptococcal
pharyngitis in a hospital pharmacy. American
Journal of Infection Control 29: 104-108
– Rusin,P., S. Maxwell, C. Gerba. 2002.
Comparative surface-to-hand and fingertip-tomouth transfer efficiency of Gram-positive
bacteria, Gram-negative bacteria, and phage.
Journal of Applied Microbiology 93:585-592
Objective/Hypothesis
Statements
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Objective- To determine how many types of
bacteria are present on a used medication
vial
Hypothesis- A used medication vial harbors
more bacteria than an used vial.
Null Hypothesis – Used and unused
medication vials harbor the same amount of
bacteria.
Methods and Materials
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Data Form
Experimental Design Matrix
Methods– Collect samples using aseptic techniques.
– Avoid environmental contaminations.
– I will be using the T-test as my statistical
method. (Harper, 1967)
Expected Results and
Benefits
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Advantages- Knowing what Pharmacy
employees come in contact with daily,
and being able to improve handling
techniques.
Benefits- Less bacterial contact means
less sickness. This will improve
productivity and decreased work days
missed.
Project Timeline
Project Budget