Home Visiting Kit

Introduction and Purpose of the Home Visiting Kit

The home visiting kit, commonly housed in a public health nursing bag, is an essential tool for community health nurses in Nigeria. It allows the nurse to bring necessary clinical equipment, diagnostic tools, and infection control supplies directly to a patient's doorstep, bridging the gap between hospital care and community wellness. Utilizing this kit effectively ensures that maternal and child health services, health education, and basic treatments can be delivered safely in homes, schools, or remote rural settlements where fixed health facilities are distant or inaccessible.

Standard Contents of a Home Visiting Kit

A well-organized public health bag contains specific items categorized for physical assessment, treatment, and infection prevention. Maintaining a standardized inventory prevents missing crucial tools during an emergency.

• Clean linen and apron: Used to protect the nurse's uniform and provide a clean workspace.
• Hand hygiene supplies: Liquid soap, hand sanitizer, and a clean hand towel.
• Diagnostic tools: Stethoscope, sphygmomanometer, thermometer, and tape measure.
• Wound care supplies: Gauze, cotton balls, bandage scissors, adhesive tape, and sterile dressings.
• Antiseptics and medications: Spirit, iodine solution, oral rehydration salts, and basic analgesics.
• Waste management: Plastic-lined waste bags for safe disposal of used materials.

Core Principles of Bag Technique

Bag technique is a procedural method used by community health nurses to render nursing care safely while preventing the spread of infection from one household to another. The core concept relies on treating the inside of the nursing bag as a clean area and the outside as potentially contaminated. Nurses must never place the bag directly on the floor or unhygienic surfaces inside a client's home. A clean barrier, such as a plastic sheet or newspaper, must always be laid down first to isolate the bag and equipment from household dirt.

Infection Control and Sterility Maintenance

Maintaining sterility and practicing strict infection control within a domestic setting requires deliberate action. Since homes lack the controlled environment of a hospital ward, the nurse creates a micro-environment of safety using the bag lining. Hands must be washed thoroughly before touching the clean contents of the bag. Used instruments and soiled dressings are isolated immediately inside designated waste bags or separate compartments to prevent cross-contamination of clean supplies.

Step-by-Step Execution of Bag Technique

1. Preparation: Upon arrival, greet the family and select a suitable, clean working surface away from heavy foot traffic.
2. Barrier placement: Spread the protective paper or plastic sheet on the surface and place the bag on top.
3. Initial hand hygiene: Perform hand washing using soap and water or hand sanitizer.
4. Unfolding the lining: Open the bag, take out the clean apron and hand towel, and arrange them appropriately.
5. Executing care: Take out only the specific equipment needed for the procedure. Perform the assessment or treatment.
6. Repackaging: Clean and return items, wash hands last, fold the protective barrier inward, and close the bag securely.

Care, Maintenance, and Storage of the Kit

The home visiting kit requires regular maintenance to remain functional and safe. After every field visit, reusable instruments must be cleaned, decontaminated, and sterilized according to institutional standards. The interior of the bag should be wiped clean with a disinfectant solution and left open to air dry periodically. Nurses must routinely check expiry dates on medications, antiseptics, and sterile dressings, replacing expired items promptly before the next deployment.