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Conference vmszoo::medical

Title:MEDICAL questions and answers
Notice:Please read notes 1.11, 1.27 and 624.*
Moderator:IJSAPL::ANDERSON
Created:Mon Jan 26 1987
Last Modified:Wed May 28 1997
Last Successful Update:Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:2054
Total number of notes:15270

2047.0. "Antibiotic-resistant infections" by POWDML::CHILTON (Sacred cows make the best hamburger) Fri Apr 18 1997 11:14

    Ok....the $64.00 question....how safe is a patient lying 
    in a room adjacent to a room containing antibiotic-resistant
    "germs"?
    
    Besides all the normal bugs hospital patients can pick up
    these days, and the risk of pneumonia, my Dad has been put
    into a room next door to someone with an antibiotic-resistant
    infection.   The door is closed, and the warnings are posted 
    on the door, but how much more risk does this add?
    
    I know no one can answer, I was just kind of thinking (lamenting)
    "out loud"....
    
    Sue :-(
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2047.1TUXEDO::GASKELLFri Apr 18 1997 12:0811
    Here's the little I know.
    
    If it's a hospital in Mass. then his chances are better because they
    still practice indoor air quality standards that were put in place when 
    tuberculosis was rampant, at least the last I heard they did.  (Can't 
    remember off the top of my head what they were called.)  New York did 
    not and when a patient came into a NY city hospital with TB, around 67 
    other people in the hospital contracted it.
    
    
    
2047.2Going thru it now!MAIL1::BARNESJFri Apr 18 1997 15:4528
    We are going thru this right now with my mother-in-law who is dying.
    She has a antibotic resistant infection and they have posted
    precautions just outside her door. Fortunately, it is not supposed to
    be airborne.
    
    They moved her roomate out of the room. Posted precautions include wearing
    gloves for incidental contact with the patient and any surfaces in the
    room; gowns and masks for very close contact with the patient. Washing
    your ands with soap and water after removing gloves is strongly
    emphasized as the most important precaution.
    
    According to her physician and nursing staff you are at risk only if
    you are ill or run down. Healthy people generally are not at risk
    although they could acquire the bug and not show any symptoms.  
    
    After all that, while we were trying to follow all these precautions we
    noticed that most of the aides, nurses and Doctors attending only used
    gloves, never gowned or masked even when changing IV,s cleaning or
    examining her.
    
    We are continuing to follow the precautions in spite of their seemingly
    unconcerned attitude.
    
    JB 
    
     
    
    The