Section 1 assessment
Has the patient got diarrhoea?
- Bristol stool score 5 to 7? See Bristol stool chart here.
- Increase in frequency?
- Offensive smell?
If the answer to the above is yes then:
Assess whether there are any underlying factors, for example:
- inflammatory bowel disease
- overflow
- aperients
- enteral feeding
- patients normal bowel habit
- new medication
- medical treatment
- antibiotics
If there are underlying factors there should be a clinical review of the following:
- general condition
- bloods, WCC, CRP, creatine
- medication (if on antibiotics and or proton pump inhibitor consider Clostridium difficile infection)
If it is determined that it is non-infective diarrhoea a review or modification of treatment should be undertaken:
- underlying cause
- medication
- review clinical response 24 to 48 hours
If after review infection is suspected or there are no underlying factors, follow the procedure in section 2.
Section 2 infection suspected
If infection is suspected:
- move to a single room
- commence isolation precautions
- obtain specimen
- medical review including antibiotic therapy
- monitor stool chart
Page last reviewed: January 10, 2025
Next review due: January 10, 2026
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