Bad news
Joined: 10 Jun 2003
Posts: 1
Posted: Tue Jun 10, 2003 3:42 am Post subject: Oh sh*t
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www.canoe.ca/WinnipegNews...-0025.html<
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>SARS hits a Canadian dialysis unit
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It is so sad
Joined: 11 Jun 2003
Posts: 1
Posted: Wed Jun 11, 2003 2:42 am Post subject: SARS
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My prayers for everyone in that clinic. It goes beyond words.
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Grant
Joined: 11 Jun 2003
Posts: 1
Posted: Wed Jun 11, 2003 5:37 am Post subject: This is so frightening
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I see so much poor attention to cleanliness in my unit that I have wondered many times if disease can be transmitted. I have seen a machine opened up sitting there for hours and wondered if bacteria and germs can get inside the machine. What if the patient before me has AIDS or Hepatitis C, am I at any risk? The staff often stops working on me to turn off an alarm on another patient's machine, then comes back to me with the same gloves. Is that cross contamination? I saw a tech wiping up blood on the floor. Without changing his gloves, he went and turned on a light switch in the waiting room and turned off an alarm on a machine. This is dangerous isnt it? It is beyond scarey to be in the middle of this always seeing the techs cross contaminating blood. What I wonder is why there aren't more incidents of infection and spread of disease???
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Yes it is
Joined: 11 Jun 2003
Posts: 1
Posted: Wed Jun 11, 2003 6:43 am Post subject: Cross contamination
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Without a doubt in that situation every one is at risk. You need to be firm on asking the person working on you to consider you and themselves and put on clean gloves.<
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>I wonder if the inspectors even keep track of the MRSA that appears in many patients clinics. Ever smell tuna fish?
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Even sadder
Joined: 11 Jun 2003
Posts: 2
Posted: Wed Jun 11, 2003 8:34 am Post subject: HIV cross contamination
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I don't know about MRSA or Hep C but what has been drilled into our heads by the CDC and many years of helping HIV patients, HIV needs to have a host to survive and multiply. A dialysis patient does not acquire HIV from the patient toilet seat, door knobs, light switches or a closed system dialysis machine. Unless the host bled on it and you ran over and put a syringe to the blood and injected this into yourself. HIV cannot survive but a very short time on any surface without a host. As I stated before I really do not know about MRSA and HEP C how long the bug can survive on a surface outside of the human body.
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ridgerunner
Joined: 11 Jan 2003
Posts: 101
Posted: Wed Jun 11, 2003 10:30 am Post subject: infection control
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heart failure and infections are the two big killers in dialysis. they are caused by the way dialysis is done. the diseases are easly transmitted especially the way dialylsis is done. you have a open pathway to your blood stream. a little bit of infected material goes a long way. the only to escape is to do home care . the other way would be to self care in the clinic making sure every thing is wiped down and only you touch the controls.
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aprnjam
Joined: 28 Apr 2003
Posts: 85
Posted: Wed Jun 11, 2003 6:11 pm Post subject: Re: infection control
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This is a link to the CDC's website about MRSA infection control for MRSA infection. Hopefully it will answer some of your questions.
www.cdc.gov/ncidod/hip/aresist/mrsahcw.htm **********************************************************
Even sadder
Joined: 11 Jun 2003
Posts: 2
Posted: Thu Jun 12, 2003 6:32 am Post subject: MRSA infection
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Thank You for the hyperlink Aprnjam; I often worry about MRSA because I know staff run in and out of the isolation room at
eak speed with the same white robe on to stop an alarm and do not change gloves while silencing another patients machine but reach into the white robe pocket and use the robe as a glove and start pressing buttons on other patients machines arrrgghhh!!!!
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aprnjam
Joined: 28 Apr 2003
Posts: 85
Posted: Thu Jun 12, 2003 2:35 pm Post subject: Well you could be
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sneaky and print a few of these pages off and "accidently" leave them at various places in the unit, the bathroom, the waiting room (leave a copy in a magazine), they will never know who left them, but the information will get out and they will realize that someone is aware but not know who. Play 007 and think of sneaky hiding places where other people will find the information, but will not be obvious that you put it there!
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leadsag
Joined: 31 Oct 2002
Posts: 263
Posted: Fri Jun 13, 2003 9:35 am Post subject: what if....
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I would not even suggest this as a joke. For a patient to do this you are just asking to get kicked out of your unit. <
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>Maybe the people who hand out the flyer can hand these out also.
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Roger
Joined: 13 Jun 2003
Posts: 1
Posted: Fri Jun 13, 2003 5:46 pm Post subject: cameras
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Do they have surveillance cameras in dialysis units? Even if they don't they will suspect the patients who are educated on their tx, because they know the other patients don't know a thing about Mersa or anything else.
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aprnjam
Joined: 28 Apr 2003
Posts: 85
Posted: Sat Jun 14, 2003 12:55 pm Post subject: It's fantastic
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that everyone is discussing what I suggested. Although it may not be approrpriate for someone who feels uncomfortable doing this, it may be for someone who is comfortable with doing it. The important thing that happened here, is that people began giving their opinion and voicing suggestions, which was the intent of my message. Sometimes, we have "jog" people to get the wheels turning and to get them to voice their frustrations and ideas.<
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>In my opinion, one printout inadvertently left in one magazine may only reach one person and educate them about their treatment. As far as who left the one printout, it could have been anyone, even one of the staff who left it. I was not suggesting that someone make 100 copies of the CDC report and leave it in the facility, but one or two copies, could have easily been left by a staff member. <
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>In fact, I left one in a magazine in my physician's dialysis unit, when I went there for my last appointment. One copy in one magazine that looked like it was read quite a bit, and I went on my way. The results I do not know, but hopefully, a patient picked up the magazine and found it, and read it and became educated on MRSA. If one patient becomes educated on one topic that can be life threatening, then that is one more than we had educated before. I intend to do the same thing when I go for my next appointment. <
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>Education, one patient at a time if
that is how is has to be done, then this is how I will do it. But, this is my commitment, and I know that I do not run the risk of being dumped as many of you do, but I can help educate in any way I can, and if it is one patient at a time, then that is the way I will do it. <
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>As I sit in the waiting room waiting for my appointment, I always talk to the other patients who are waiting, asking them questions, educating them. My neph has commented that he has noticed that I have been doing a lot of patient education in the waiting room. I told that yes, I have, and asked him if he had a problem with it. I have a wonderful neph, who said no, keep educating them, they need all they can get, and we don't always have time to do it as it should be done and you have a knack for explaining to them in terms that they seem to understand, so keep it up! So, with his permission, I educate the patients to my hearts content while I wait for my appointment. I very fortunate to have an aggressive neph who believes in patient education. I wish all of you were so lucky.<
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>I know that I am virtually unknown on this board, but I can tell you that in all my years in nursing, I never knew this problem existed. I lived happily in my specialty and never knew it was such a serious a problem. I am ashamed that nurses treat you with such disrespect and do not follow aseptic techniques when handling such critical care as your dialysis where bacteria can easily be introduced into your bloodstream. I cannot belive that patient's are treated in such a manner. I have noting to lose by coming forward and advocating for any of you, and will do so, if Arlene ever needs my help. I DO NOT believe in patient's being treated in this manner. You should be treated with respect and dignity, as well as the nurses/techs using the proper aseptic technique when such serious infections can make you so very ill and place your life at risk.<
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>I know that many of my posts may seem a "bit of the wall" to many of you, but many are meant to stimulate you, to make you think, and most of all, to take your minds off your current situation for a little while. Sometimes, as patient's with chronic diseases, we all need diversions, something that will fire our emotions and lift us from the depression that we sometimes fall into because we are ill. While I am lucky and not on dialysis, I still have chronic renal failure and still have a lot of the symptoms. I also have a few other chronic diseases thrown in that age has been kind enough to instill on me, so I know a little bit about how you feel. And I know that when I can get on my "soapbox" about something, it helps, and takes my mind off things. <
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>Right now, I'm facing removal of an experimental prosthesis, that my surgeon told me was "new" from my left knee, that is infected, and has essentially "killed" part of the bone in my left leg and it is infected, with MRSA. When that is removed, it will packed with antibiotics, a central line will be placed, and I will receive 6 weeks of IV Vancomycin, when that is completed, I will have a total knee replacement. I am colonized with MRSA because I worked with patients in long-term care who had active MRSA infections. It's not the same as dialysis, but the surgeon ignored my complaints and now I must undergo must more extensive surgery, with higher risks. Helping you, helps me, because it takes my mind off my issues.<
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>So when you see what you think might be an "off the wall" suggestion from me, remember, I'm trying to help you get on a "soapbox" and vent some frustrations that you have. Hang in there, we will win this battle, and the war and you will get the respect and proper treatment that you deserve!!!!<
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