Infections can occur after many types of medical procedures, especially surgery. Hand washing is very important after handling any type of soiled material, and especially after you have gone to the bathroom. Remind everyone with whom you have contact, even your care team, to wash their hands before and after working with you. If possible, ask your friends and relatives not to visit if they themselves feel ill. If you have an intravenous catheter or drainage tube, keep the surrounding skin clean and dry, and let your nurse know promptly if either become loose, or the dressing comes loose or gets wet. If you have diabetes, ensure your blood sugar is controlled as high blood increases the risk of infection noticeably. If you are overweight, losing weight will reduce the risk of infection following surgery. If you are a smoker, consider a smoking cessation program as this will reduce the chance of lung infection while in hospital.
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