Hospital bug deaths on the rise

The number of deaths linked to the hospital bug Clostridium difficile has outstripped those due to MRSA, latest figures show.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/6385323.stm


What the heck is going on over here......this stuff truly scares the h*** out of me. I really hate reading about.  Why, oh why can't they clean the hospitals properly? 

I just don't get it either. i don't understand why there is such a problem over here.  I rarely heard of this stuff back home in the states (though I am pretty sure it has happened).  This is what scares me the most about my surgery next week.  It's not the surgery itself. It's the after care that scares me.  Particularly since we have one of the dirtiest hospitals around. DH has spent a lot of time in hospitals growing up (from  silly little accidents!) and he says ours is the worst he has ever seen. Sitting in the waiting room, there is dust caked so bad on the ceiling fans, the water fountain looks like someone threw up in it.  The floors have dirt everywhere. The chairs are all torn with stuffing coming out. Dirt marks up and down the walls. Sometimes, I can't believe I am supposed to be living in a civilized country!

I just don't get it either. i don't understand why there is such a problem over here.  I rarely heard of this stuff back home in the states (though I am pretty sure it has happened). 

It's just as bad in the US, though maybe there's less press coverage about it for some reason. My mom had MRSA and it was vile.

I certainly believe it exists in the states but its not as bad as it is here. Aside from Whisper's description of what she has seen (I don't believe I ever saw conditions like that in the states) we hear story after story of health care workers not even washing their hands.......at least in the states that is drilled into their heads.

The gov needs to step in asap and temporarily close down certain units until they are cleaned up. AND if anyone is seem not washing their hands.....they should receive two or three warnings and when they don't comply they should be fired. I bet that would make folks learn to wash up asap.

do you really think that the spread of infection is because staff don't wash their hands??

i had an MRSA+ patient and his family was touching/hugging him, leaning on the bed, bringing young (3-4 year old) kids into an intensive care unit, kissing granddad and then going out the waiting room/home just using the alcohol gel on their hands...when i asked what the policy was for visitors and MRSA+ patients, i was told by at least 2 senior nurses....there was NO policy.... and if we imposed restrictions on his family they might be "offended" because he was being treated "differently"  he was, by the way, in the middle of an 8 bed bay...welcome to the NHS.
 in the states he would have been placed in an isolation room and everyone who entered the room, including visitors would wear gowns and gloves.

just FYI, C Diff, is usually caused by antibiotics...
Clostridium difficile
Introduction

Clostridium difficile (C. diff) is a bacterium that is present naturally in the gut of around 3% of adults and 66% of children.

C. diff doesn’t cause any problems in healthy people. However, some antibiotics that are used to treat other health conditions can interfere with the balance of ‘good’ bacteria in the gut. When this happens, C. diff bacteria can multiply and cause symptoms such as diarrhoea and fever.

Because C. diff infections are usually caused by antibiotics, most cases usually happen in a healthcare environment such as a hospital or care home. Older people are most at risk from infection, with the majority of cases (80%) occurring in people over the age of 65.

Most people with a C. diff infection make a full recovery. However, in very rare cases the infection can be fatal.

The number of C. diff cases has risen from 22,000 a year in 2002 to almost 45,000 in 2004. One of the main reasons for this rise is the improvement in tests to diagnose the infection, but there has clearly been an increase in the number of cases.

C. diff infections can be prevented by good hygiene practices in healthcare environments. However, it is extremely contagious and is spread very easily.