GT hospital is tackling MRSA superbug
Cayman Islands Hospital, George Town
(CNS): The George Town hospital has confirmed that it has dealt with some 32 cases of the hospital super-bug MRSA over the last two years. But officials told CNS that the HSA is tackling the super-bug and an infection control surveillance system has been in place since 1990 to identify and track all incidences of hospital acquired infections, which includes MRSA. CNS requested information from the Health Services Authority regarding the super-bug after reports from readers that they were struggling to get a diagnosis but believed that had contracted the antibiotic resistant MRSA at the local facility.Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus is the most common ‘super-bug’ found in hospitals and it is plaguing medical facilities around the world.
A spokesperson for the Health Services Authority (HSA) said that its laboratories confirmed eight cases in 2013, 15 last year and another eight so far this year. Problematic for hospitals because of its resistance to antibiotics, officials told CNS that the local hospital has antibiotics available that can treat and cure MRSA.
“In order to control the spread of MRSA the HSA pro-actively screens all susceptible patients for MRSA, this includes patients with a previous diagnosis of MRSA, patients who have been hospitalised overseas and are being transferred back to the hospital, persons admitted with wounds or other breaks in the skin,” a spokesperson said. “Staphylococcus aureus is an organism commonly found on the skin therefore healthy persons can become carriers of MRSA and not have any ill effects from the organism until they have other health issues.”
She explained that the infection control surveillance system at the hospital is geared towards preventing an outbreak of MRSA in the in-patient units. “Patients who are diagnosed with MRSA are cared for in single rooms and put on the required treatment. Following treatment the test is repeated, patients have to have three consecutive negative cultures before being declared MRSA free. Strict adherence to hand washing is essential to ensure that the organism is not passed from person to person.”
MRSA and similar super-bugs present ongoing problems to the medical community as they become increasingly resistant to most antibiotics not least, experts believe, because of massive over and unnecessary prescription of antibiotics in recent years.
One in every three people are believed to carry the bug as a harmless organism on moist parts of the body like hands, noses and armpits. In the majority of cases it does no harm because it doesn’t reach the bloodstream or the immune system is strong enough to repel infection. But it becomes a serious problem for those who are sick and vulnerable especially after an operation.
Category: Health, Medical Health
Why are the infection control experts allowing all those old magazines in waiting areas and sick-rooms? There’s an active campaign to collect/donate old magazines and reading material to the hospital. Although well intentioned, it’s completely against modern practices.
Google “The Legend of Four Thieves : Four Thieves Anti-Plague Remedy.” It might be easier to protect yourself than blame someone for something and everything. Besides, it smells so good.
You seem to be mixing up the real world with Harry Potter.
2nd floor of GT Hospital has no working dispensers of anti-bacterial liquid for visitors to squeeze onto their hands.
Which is pretty much an open a shut case of negligence. Someone should be disciplined for that. What am I saying? It is Cayman, there is no professional discipline.
You cannot hold doctors to a higher standard than lawyers.
hay if all of you complainers pay your bills then the hospital would be able to get what it takes to protect us all.
Perhaps mention, certainly an oversight. Care at GT Hospital FAR exceeds care in the states, if anyone cares about comparison.
LOL
Wow! We’re you able to type that with a straight face? That is funny. I guess not using latex gloves with every patient is a sign of superior health care…you can argue all you want but I have already had two instances of having to tell our caring health professionals that they should be wearing gloves. Each time they tried to escalate it and called security claiming I was creating a disturbance.
What a bunch of impostors!
God does work in mysterious ways. Careful with your atheist cynicism before something happens in your life where you wish for God.
I doubt I will ever have the need to put “faith” in a fictional construct. I’ll leave that for the stupid and the brainwashed.
Seriously he did play the “mysterious ways” gambit.
I think in this case I’d wish for better sanitation.
You have no idea of just how many people around here have MRSA .Come to hospital and you should expect to get it. It’s everywhere………….hello….mcfly…..and after persons are diagnosed with such what else is being done.not a ting as we all love to say…… The hospital is full of this, nothing to see here………business as usual.
I guess we will all be walking and going to the beach with Masks over our faces.
What beach? There soon won’t be a beach!!
But there will be lots and lots of watch shops.
Yep, just The Dump.
God did not invent MRSA or any other disease. Diseases came about from the fall of mankind pollution and other man made conditions . Some things are willfully done that are not good for us so we have to bear the consequences including MRSA and other diseases.
Totally mental.
Kindly explain, the “fall of man” and how the “fall of man” creates bacteria and viruses.
A heady mix of magic, mumbo and jumbo. That is the best explanation. Plus a little smidgen of “mysterious ways”.
Perhaps the Christian extremists can kindly explain why a loving God invented MRSA. Is it because he works in “mysterious ways”?
Mysterious ways is pretty much their cop-out for most of the tricky stuff.
No, it was to assist good people in selling expensive tents.
Yeh, get them all with it under the ebola tent. How much did they spend? Close to a mil.?
It’s usually man made illnesses, to keep the pockets of the pharmaceutical giants lined…perhaps someone, anyone can kindly explain why a cure for MRSA hasn’t been formulated? The Creator works in miraculous ways.
so its man made to line the pockets of the drug companies – not an awfully clever stratagem if they didn’t simultaneously invent a drug to treat it – no drug, no sale, no profit, no logic to your theory.
Never mind MRSA. Why snot?